Sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides L.) inhibits cellular proliferation, wound healing and decreases expression of prostate specific antigen in prostate cancer cells in vitro

[Display omitted] •Sea buckthorn leaves are used as tea in Ladakh region of India.•Sea buckthorn can act as promising functional food.•Sea buckthorn extract can effectively inhibit prostate cancer growth and proliferation in vitro.•Sea buckthorn extract effectively downregulates prostate specific antigen with other androgen responsive genes in vitro. Androgen receptor (AR) is a ligand-dependent transcription factor that governs the expression of androgen-responsive genes. If somehow AR is retained in the cytoplasm and its shuttling into the nucleus is inhibited it cannot activate the target androgen responsive genes and prevent prostate cancer progression. The primary goal of our study was to evaluate plant based functional food extract from sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides L.) that can target AR nuclear localization in prostate cancer cells and inhibit prostate cancer growth in vitro. Differential extraction using various solvents based on polarity revealed that the end phase aqueous cocktail extracted from leaves of Hippophae rhamnoides L. (SKICDDL-3) can effectively target AR and downregulate androgen responsive genes, PSA, ELL2, EAF2 and CALR significantly in vitro. Colony formation Unit assay and Wound healing assay further shows that SKICDDL-3 can effectively inhibit proliferation and migration of castration resistant C4-2 prostate cancer cells in vitro.