1. Academic Validation
  2. The genotoxicity of lucidin, a natural component of Rubia tinctorum L., and lucidinethylether, a component of ethanolic Rubia extracts

The genotoxicity of lucidin, a natural component of Rubia tinctorum L., and lucidinethylether, a component of ethanolic Rubia extracts

  • Cell Biol Toxicol. 1988 Jun;4(2):225-39. doi: 10.1007/BF00119248.
J Westendorf 1 B Poginsky H Marquardt G Groth H Marquardt
Affiliations

Affiliation

  • 1 Department of Toxicology, University of Hamburg Medical School, Federal Republic of Germany.
Abstract

The genotoxic activity of lucidin (1,3-dihydroxy-2-hydroxymethyl-9,10-anthraquinone), a natural component of Rubia tinctorum L., was tested in a battery of short-term tests. The compound was mutagenic in five Salmonella typhimurium strains without metabolic activation, but the mutagenicity was increased after addition of rat liver S9 mix. In V79 cells, lucidin was mutagenic at the hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyl transferase gene locus and active at inducing DNA single-strand breaks and DNA-protein cross-links as assayed by the alkaline elution method. Lucidin also induced DNA repair synthesis in primary rat hepatocytes and transformed C3H/M2-mouse fibroblasts in culture. We also investigated lucidinethylether, which is formed from lucidin by extraction of madder roots with boiling ethanol. This compound was also mutagenic in Salmonella, but only after addition of rat liver S9 mix. Lucidinethylether was weakly mutagenic to V79 cells which were cocultivated with rat hepatocytes. The compound did not induce DNA repair synthesis in hepatocytes from untreated rats, but positive results were obtained when hepatocytes from rats pretreated with phenobarbital were used. We conclude that lucidin and its derivatives are genotoxic.

Figures
Products
  • Cat. No.
    Product Name
    Description
    Target
    Research Area
  • HY-15733
    Anthraquinone Derivative