Zizyphi spinosi semen (Z. spinosi) has been used in traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and wounds. However, toxicity in high doses was often observed due to the presence of alkaloids. This study was conducted to investigate the potential genotoxicity of Z. spinosi in vitro and in vivo. This was examined by the Bacterial reverse mutation (Ames) test using Salmonella typhimurium TA98, TA100, TA1535, TA1537 and Escherichia coli WP2uvrA, Chromosomal aberration was investigated using Chinese hamster lung cells and the micronucleus test using mice. Z. Spinosi did not induce mutagenicity in the Ames test, and it did not produce chromosomal aberration in Chinese hamster lung cells with and without metabolic activation, nor in the micronucleated polychromatic erythrocytes in the bone marrow cells in mice. Based on these results, it is concluded that Z. spinosi does not have mutagenic potential under the conditions examined in each study.

This study was carried out to investigate whether Chrysanthermum zawadskii var. latilobum Kitamura (C. zawadskii) extracts has an inhibitory effect against the mutagenicity by cigarette smoke condensates (CSC). C. zawadskii was extracted with 70% ethanol and the yield was 18.5%. We further fractioned 70% ethanol extract sequentially to diethylether, chloroform, dichloromethane, and aqueous water, and gained the yield of 17.5%, 5.6%, 5.8%, 32.8% and 35.5%, respectively. In the Ames test, there was no mutagenic effect of crude extract and its solvent fractions up to 2 mg/plate toward Salmonella typhimurium TA 98 with or without S-9 mix metabolic activations. On the contrary, the crude extract showed an inhibitory activity against the mutagenicity of CSC in the presence of S-9 mix metabolic activation. Diethyl ether layer among five solvent fractions showed the highest inhibitory activity. The inhibitory activity of diethyl ether fraction was also increased in a dose-dependent manner and the inhibitory rate was about 97.7% at the concentration of 1 mg/plate. In this study, we conclude that crude extract of C. zawadskii itself is potentially safe for mutagenicity, and the diethyl ether fraction has an inhibitory effect against the mutagenicity of CSC.

건조 생약재인 황기, 감초 및 진피의 감마선 조사 위생화의 가능성을 검토하기 위하여 감마선 조사 후 Samonella typhimurium TA98과 TA100 균주를 이용한 유전 독성학적인 안전성을 평가하고자 하였다. 시험 대상은 오염유기체 완전 구제 선량인 10kGy의 감마선으로 조사된 시료의 열수 추출물을 대상으로 하였으며 시험농도는 대상물질이 생약재임을 고려하여 50%의 균주생장억제를 나타내는 농도를 최고 농도로 하였다. 시험은 대사 활성