Related GMR Articles
Cattley guava (Psidium cattleyanum Sabine) is a native fruit of Brazil that is popular both as a sweet food and for its reputed therapeutic properties. We examined whether it could damage DNA using the alkaline single-cell gel electrophoresis (comet assay) and the micronucleus test in leukocytes and in bone marrow cells of mice. P. cattleyanum leaf extract was tested at ... more
It is estimated that 60% of anticancer drugs are derived directly or indirectly from medicinal plants. Schinus terebinthifolius Raddi (Anacardiaceae) is traditionally used in Brazilian medicine to treat inflammation, ulcers, and tumors. Because of the need to identify new antimutagenic agents and to determine their mechanism of action, this study evaluated the chemopreventive ... more
Tamarindus indica has been used in folk medicine as an antidiabetic, a digestive aid, and a carminative, among other uses. Currently, there is no information in the toxicology literature concerning the safety of T. indica extract. We evaluated the clastogenic and/or genotoxic potential of fruit pulp extract of this plant in vivo in peripheral blood and liver ... more
Human haptoglobin is classified into three major phenotypes: Hp1-1, Hp2-1 and Hp2-2; there are two autosomal alleles Hp*1 and Hp*2, and the Hp*1 allele has two subtypes, Hp*1F and Hp*1S. Haptoglobin acts as an antioxidant, preventing hemoglobin-driven oxidative damage. We used the comet assay to ... more
Ambelania occidentalis is routinely used in folk medicine for treating gastrointestinal disorders, even though there have been no safety trials. We evaluated the genotoxic potential of hydro-alcoholic extracts of this plant in mice; induced DNA damage was assessed in peripheral blood leukocytes and micronucleus induction was assessed in polychromatic erythrocytes from bone marrow. The ... more
Plants are a source of many biologically active products and nowadays they are of great interest to the pharmaceutical industry. In the present study, the mutagenic potential of the Musa paradisiaca fruit peel extract was assessed by the single-cell gel electrophoresis (SCGE) and micronucleus assays. Animals were treated orally with three different concentrations of the extract (1000 ... more
Phenols are a large and diverse class of compounds, many of which occur naturally in a variety of food plants; they exhibit a wide range of biological effects, including antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antiallergic, hepatoprotective, antithrombotic, antiviral, anticarcinogenic, and vasodilatory actions. We examined the genotoxic and clastogenic potential of three phenolic compounds: ... more
Rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) oil is widely used by the cosmetic, food, and pharmaceutical industries as a fragrance component of soaps, creams, lotions, and perfumes. Although it is popular, potential harmful side-effects of the oil have been described. We investigated the genotoxic and mutagenic potential of essential oil of R. officinalis in rodents, using comet, ... more
17α-Methyltestosterone (MT) is widely used in fish hatcheries of many countries to produce male monosex populations. Its genotoxic risk to fish species is not well known and studies in other in vivo models are still inconclusive. MT was tested for genotoxicity in the fish species Oreochromis niloticus (tilapia), a target species, and Astyanax bimaculatus ( ... more