Antimutagenic and Chemoprevention Potentialities of Sweet Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare Mill.) Hot Water Crude Extract

Abstract

The use of medicinal plants by the general population is an old and still widespread practice that makes studies of their mutagenicity and/or antimutagenic/anticarcinogenic very essential. Fennel, Foeniculum vulgare, one of the most common use in Egyptian kitchen as a spice and beverage as well as in traditional medicine for its estrogenic, lactagouge, diuretic, antioxidant, immune booster and its usefulness in dyspepsia. It contains many phytochemicals such as thymol, carvacrol, terpinenes, P-thymene and thymol methyl ether, phenolic glycosides, flavonoids, phytosterols-triterp and saponins. Therefore, the potential antimutagenic and cancer chemoprevention effects of the hot water crude extract of sweet fennel (Foeniculum vulgare Mill.) seeds were evaluated in well known genetic model organisms mice and Drosophila: using mutagenicity, molecular and biochemical assays. In mice, Mitomycin C (MMC) was administered to mice as a positive control alone before and after treatment with 5 or 0.5 mg/Kg body weight or in combination with Fennel crude extract as acute (24h) and sub acute (5 consecutive days) doses, respectively. Chromosomal aberration assay in mice bone marrow cells revealed slight insignificant effect of fennel extract on aberrant mitosis rate, while it gave remarkable significant reduction of the MMC induced chromosomal aberrations. This effect was found to be dose-dependent. However, random amplified polymorphism of DNA (RAPD) showed clear variation between different classes of treated and non treated animals against MMC treatment, which reflected DNA protective effect of fennel extract. Biochemical studies showed slight effects on liver and kidney functions. Nucleic acids system (RNA, DNA, RNAase, DNAase and total soluble protein of liver), also the serum uric acid, urea and creatinine (kidneys function) and liver function (GOT and GPT activities) were slightly affected by MMC, which were improved by the ingestion of Fennel extract, whereas fennel extract alleviated MMC toxic effects. In Drosophila, Fennel extract significantly decreased the frequency of cholchicine induced aneuploidy and chromosomal aberrations in post and pre-treatments. [Journal of American Science 2010; 6(9):831-842]. (ISSN: 1545-1003).