Cassia auriculata Linn. extracts induce apoptosis and cell cycle arrest of A549 lung cancer cell lines: An in vitro approach

•The A549 cells treated with Cassia auriculata ethanolic extract (CAEE) revealed low cell survival rate on MTT assay compared to L132 cells.•Treated cells exhibited nuclear morphological changes indicating the apoptotic mode of cell death upon various fluorescent staining techniques like DAPI, AO/EB & PI.•An augment in the levels of procaspase 9 by CAEE indicated the ability of drug to induce apoptosis in A549 lung cancer cells.•Up-regulation in the expression of the caspase 9 gene was observed after treatment with CAEE with a fold change of 3.81- at 50 µg/ml dose.