Genotoxicity assessment of Garcinia achachairu Rusby (Clusiaceae) extract in mammalian cells in vivo
Graphical Abstract
Introduction
Preparations of medicinal plants are widely used in human therapy. Since in nature, some plants synthesize toxic chemicals, apparently as a primary defense mechanism against bacteria, fungi, insects and other animal predators, in-depth studies on their potential risks to human health are necessary.
Garcinia achachairu Rusby (Clusiaceae) is a plant belonging to the genus Garcinia – ex genus Rheedia (Sweeney, 2008), popularly known as “achachairu”. This plant is used in Bolivian folk medicine for its healing, digestive, and laxative properties, and for the treatment of gastritis, rheumatism and inflammation (Barbosa and Artiole, 2007). Some species of this genus have different chemical constituents, such as benzophenones and bioflavonoids, with great importance for the pharmaceutical industries due to the wide spectrum of biological activities of these compounds. Its activities include cytophatic inhibition of in vitro HIV infection; free radical scavenging; iNOS and COX-2 expression inhibition in carcinoma of the colon; induction of apoptosis, antiulcer, and trypanocidal properties (Martins et al., 2007). Recently, in our laboratories, we have demonstrated that the seed extract, fractions and a pure compound named Guttiferone A have important antinociceptive activity in different experimental models in mice (Molin et al., 2012).
According to the literature, using the comet assay and micronucleus test, it is possible to evaluate the potential genotoxicity of many compounds through in vitro and in vivo models (Aquino et al., 2011, Melo-Cavalcante et al., 2011, Ribeiro et al., 2010, Rodrigues et al., 2009). These assays have achieved the status of standard tests in the battery of tests used to assess the safety of novel pharmaceuticals or other chemicals (Candido-Bacani Pde et al., 2011). To our knowledge, there have been no previous studies investigating the genetic toxicity of plants belonging to the Garcinia genus. Therefore, the present study was undertaken to investigate the genotoxic and clastogenic potential of Garcinia achachairu seeds extract (GAE) on different cells of mice using the comet and micronucleus assays, respectively.
Section snippets
Plant material
The material (leaves, seeds and branches) of G. achachairu were collected separately in Camboriú, Santa Catarina, in March 2007 and identified by Dr. Oscar B. Iza (Department of Botany, University of Vale do Itajaí). A voucher specimen was deposited at the Barbosa Rodrigues Herbarium (Itajaí-SC) under number HBR 52637. In this work, only the extract prepared from the seeds was used.
Extract preparation
Air-dried and powdered seeds (250 g) of G. achachairu were extracted at room temperature by maceration with
Results and discussion
The therapeutic use of natural products, including medicinal plants, has become increasingly prevalent. Many pharmacognostical and pharmacological investigations have been performed to identify lead compounds for drug development (Newman et al., 2003). Due to the biological activities of these compounds, evaluation of its genotoxic/mutagenic potential is essential (Bast et al., 2002, Rodeiro et al., 2006, Santos et al., 2007, Tice et al., 2000).
The phytochemical profile of the Garcinia
Acknowledgments
E.S. Marques thanks CAPES for a Master's scholarship and Patrícia C. Martins Mello for her technical assistance.
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