Abstract

Rhododendron honey (RH) is obtained from the rhododendron plants are grown in many regions around the world, causes poisoning in humans due to the grayanotoxin (GTX) compound in its structure. It is used by the public as a therapeutic for some diseases. It was aimed to study the genotoxic and cytotoxic effects of RH in mouse bone-marrow and sperm cells by using three mammalian bioassays. 25, 50 and 75 mg kg⁻¹ concentrations of RH given to male mice via gavage for 24 and 48 h treatment periods and its active ingredient Grayanatoxin (GTX-III) 0.01 mg kg⁻¹ by i.p. injection. Chromosome aberrations (CA), polychromatic erythrocytes (PCE)/normochromatic erythrocytes (NCE), micronucleated polychromatic erythrocytes (MNPCE) and sperm abnormalities were investigated. The results demonstrated that all the tested concentrations of RH significantly induced total abnormal cell frequency including chromosomal breaks for two time periods. In the MN assay, 75 mg kg⁻¹ RH and 0.01 mg kg⁻¹ GTX-III significantly increased % MNPCE and significantly reduced PCE/NCE ratios after 24 and 48 h treatments on mice demonstrating potential genotoxic and cytotoxic effect. Although there was a concentration-related increase in the percentage of total sperm abnormalities, this increase was not statistically significant compared to control. As a result, microscopic genotoxicity and cytotoxicity marker tests showed that RH and its active ingredient GTX-III have potential genotoxic and cytotoxic effect on mice bone marrow cells. It is understood that RH that is used to treat some diseases by public, should be handled carefully and used in a controlled manner.

• Highlights

• Chromosome aberration, micronucleus and sperm morphology assays are recommended as reliable biological indicators.

• RH and its active ingredient GTX-III have potential genotoxic and cytotoxic effect on mice bone marrow cells.

• Significant changes were observed upon the treatment of 75 mg kg⁻¹ MH for MN assay.

摘要

杜鹃花蜜 (RH) 是从世界许多地区种植的杜鹃花植物中提取的，由于其结构中含有灰霉毒素 (GTX) 化合物而导致人体中毒。它被公众用作某些疾病的治疗剂。旨在通过使用三种哺乳动物生物测定来研究 RH 在小鼠骨髓和精子细胞中的遗传毒性和细胞毒性作用。25、50和 75 mg kg ^-1浓度的 RH 通过管饲法给予雄性小鼠 24 和 48 小时治疗期及其活性成分 Grayanatoxin (GTX-III) 0.01 mg kg ^-1通过 ip 注入。研究了染色体畸变 (CA)、多染红细胞 (PCE)/正染红细胞 (NCE)、微核多染红细胞 (MNPCE) 和精子异常。结果表明，所有测试的 RH 浓度均显着诱导了两个时间段的总异常细胞频率，包括染色体断裂。在 MN 测定中，75 mg kg ^-1 RH 和 0.01 mg kg ^-1GTX-III 在小鼠治疗 24 和 48 小时后显着增加 % MNPCE 并显着降低 PCE/NCE 比率，显示出潜在的基因毒性和细胞毒性作用。尽管总精子异常的百分比存在浓度相关的增加，但与对照相比，这种增加没有统计学意义。结果，显微遗传毒性和细胞毒性标志物试验表明，RH及其活性成分GTX-III对小鼠骨髓细胞具有潜在的遗传毒性和细胞毒性作用。据了解，公众用于治疗某些疾病的RH，应谨慎处理，控制使用。

• 强调

• 建议将染色体畸变、微核和精子形态测定作为可靠的生物学指标。

• RH及其活性成分GTX-III对小鼠骨髓细胞具有潜在的基因毒性和细胞毒性作用。

• ^{在 75 mg kg -1} MH 处理 MN 测定时观察到显着变化。