The medicinal and tree species Luehea divaricata is known as 'açoita-cavalo' and widely used for wood, reclamation, and in popular medicine. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antiproliferative and genotoxic effects of infusions of two populations of this species on the Allium cepa cell cycle. Cells of root tips of Allium cepa were used as an in vivo test system for monitoring the genotoxicity of this medicinal plant. Leaves and bark of two populations of Luehea divaricata were collected during the vegetative stage and used to prepare infusions in two concentrations: for the leaves (6 g/L and 30 g/L) and two concentrations for the bark (32 g/L and 160 g/L), using distilled water as negative control and glyphosate 3% as positive control. For this study, 10 groups of four bulbs were utilized, with one group of bulbs for each treatment. The slides were prepared by the squashing technique, scoring 4000 cells for each group of bulbs. The mitotic index (MI) was calculated and then a statistical analysis was performed using chi-square (χ 2 ). The results showed that Luehea divaricata infusions in both populations caused a reduction of MI compared to control, and in both analyzed concentrations there was no significant genotoxic effect in comparison to the negative control, however there was a significant difference in relation to the positive control for both populations. The antiproliferative effect of leaf extracts increased with a greater concentration and among bark extracts no significant difference occurred between the two concentrations. The studied populations did not show genetic variability regarding the antiproliferative effect.
Biological assays are widely used to monitor toxic and allelopathic substances. The present study aimed to evaluate the allelopathic, genotoxic, and antiproliferative potential of aqueous extracts of Psychotria brachypoda (Müll. Arg.) Britton and Psychotria birotula Smith & Downs in two concentrations on the germination and cell division of Eruca sativa Hill. seeds. The biological assay was conducted in a controlled growth chamber. For monitoring the allelopathic effect, the following variables were evaluated: total number of germinated seeds, seedling root length, germination velocity index, and germination percentage. The means were compared using the Tukey test and orthogonal contrasts were undertaken to better compare the variables. To evaluate the antiproliferative and genotoxic effects, seedling roots were collected and the squashing technique was followed for preparation of slides. The results of the present study demonstrated that the medicinal species Psychotria brachypoda and Psychotria birotula inhibited root growth, germination velocity index, and germination percentage in seeds of arugula, in addition to inhibiting cell division and inducing chromosomal alterations in Eruca sativa. We conclude that the studied species have alellopathic, genotoxic, and antiproliferative effects on Eruca sativa in both concentrations studied.
The use of rice bran (RB), soybean (SB) or sunflower seed (SF) oils to prepare lipid-core nanocapsules (LNCs) as controlled drug delivery systems was investigated. LNCs were prepared by interfacial deposition using the preformed polymer method. All formulations showed negative zeta potential and adequate nanotechnological characteristics (particle size 220-230 nm, polydispersity index < 0.20). The environmental safety was evaluated through an in vivo protocol (Allium cepa test) and LNCs containing RB, SB or SF oils did not present genotoxic potential. Clobetasol propionate (CP) was selected as a model drug to evaluate the influence of the type of vegetable oil on the control of the drug release from LNCs. Biphasic drug release profiles were observed for all formulations. After 168 h, the concentration of drug released from the formulation containing SF oil was lower (0.36 mg/mL) than from formulations containing SB (0.40 mg/mL) or RB oil (0.45 mg/mL). Good correlations between the consistency indices for the LNC cores and the burst and sustained drug release rate constants were obtained. Therefore, the type of the vegetal oil was shown as an important factor governing the control of drug release from LNCs.
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the antiproliferative and antigenotoxic activity of Sambucus australis Cham. & Schltdl. aqueous extracts on the cell cycle of Allium cepa L. as well as determine the phenolic compounds in such extracts. S. australis inflorescences and leaves of two accessions were used for aqueous extract preparation at concentrations: 0.003 g/ml and 0.012 g/ml. A. cepa bulbs were rooted in distilled water and, subsequently, placed in treatments for 24 hours. Rootlets were collected and fixed in modified Carnoy's solution for 24 hours and kept. The squash technique was performed for slide preparation. Root tips were smashed and stained with 2% acetic orcein, and a total of 4000 cells per treatment were analyzed. The phenolic compounds were determined using high-performance liquid chromatography and data was analyzed using the Scott-Knott test. The results show that S. australis aqueous extracts have antiproliferative potential. Besides, the extracts prepared from S. australis leaves of both accessions at a concentration of 0.012 g/ml have shown antigenotoxic activity. The phytochemical analysis allowed us to determine the presence of flavonoids and phenolic acids, of which kaempferol and chrologenic acid were the most predominant compounds in the extracts from the inflorescences and leaves, respectively.
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