Clastogenicity of beta-caryophyllene in mouse.

Beta-caryophyllene (BC) is a chemical found in the essential oil of numerous plants which have shown various biomedical properties. In the present investigation we examined for the first time its genotoxic capacity in vivo by evaluating its potential to induce micronuclei in mouse. In a first assay we administered three doses of the compound once, and in a second assay, we administered three doses of BC in three consecutive days.

Antigenotoxic, antioxidant and lymphocyte induction effects produced by pteropodine.

Pteropodine is a heterohimbine-type oxindole alkaloid specifically isolated from 'Cat's claw' (Uncaria tomentosa), a plant that has shown cytostatic, anti-inflammatory and antimutagenic properties and is used in traditional medicine to cure a number of diseases. In this report, we studied the ability of pteropodine to decrease the rate of sister-chromatid exchanges and micronucleated polychromatic erythrocytes in mice administered doxorubicin. We also determined its capacity to induce lymphocyte production in mice as well as its free radical scavenging potential by applying the DPPH assay.

Genotoxic and cytotoxic studies of beta-sitosterol and pteropodine in mouse.

Beta-sitosterol (BS) and pteropodine (PT) are constituents of various plants with pharmacological activities potentially useful to man. The chemicals themselves possess biomedical properties related to the modulation of the immune and the nervous systems, as well as to the inflammatory process. Therefore, safety evaluation of the compounds is necessary in regard to their probable beneficial use in human health.