Flavonoids mutagenicity

H. Czeczot, B. Tudek, J. Kusztelak, T. Sz.ymczyk, B. Dobrowolska, G. Glinkowska, J. Malinowski, and H. Strzeiccka, Isolation and studies of the mutagenic activity in the Ames test of flavonoids naturally occurring in medical herbs. Mutat. Re.s. 240 209 (1990). 

R. Edenharder, 1. von Petersdorff, and R. Rauscher, Antimutagenic effects of flavonoids, chalcones and structurally related compounds on the activity of 2-amino-3-methylimidazo(4,5-f quinoline (IQ) and other heterocyclic amine mutagens from cooked food. Mutat Res. 287 261 (1993). 

Quercetin is a naturally occurring flavonoid with both antioxidant and prooxidant activities (Scheme 10.12).90 It has been demonstrated in a variety of bacterial and mammalian mutagenicity experiments that quercetin has mutagenic properties that could be related to quinoid formation.91,92 Quercetin is initially oxidized to an o-quinone, which rapidly isomerizes to di-QMs that could also be called extended... 

MacGregor, J. T. Jurd, L. Mutagenicity of plant flavonoids structural requirements for mutagenic activity in Salmonella typhimurium. Mutat. Res. 1978, 54, 297-309. 

The plant is known elaborate a series of quite unusual phenanthrene alkaloid derivatives, of which aristoliukine-C, aristofolin A and E, aristolochic acid-la methyl ester, and aristolochic acid. Other chemical constituents found in this plant are flavonoid glycosides such as kaempferol-3-O-rutinoside and quercetin kaempferol-3-O-rutinoside (3,4). Exposure to Aristolochiaceae family is associated with the development of cancer in humans. A significant advance is the toxicological effects of aristolochic acid has been provided by the work of Pezzuto et al. They showed that aristolochic acid is a mutagen... 

Takahashi Y, Nagao M, Fujino T, Yamaizumi Z and Sugimura T. 1979. Mutagens in Japanese pickle identified as flavonoids. Mut Res 68 117—123. 

Cytotox/c/ty There has been some concern raised over cytotoxic and mutagenic in-vitro effects of hypericum, which have been ascribed to the constituent quercetin (Tyler 1994). However, quercetin is a flavonoid that is present in many plants and vegetables, and it is estimated that the average person consumes 50 mg per day. Consumption of hypericum would not significantly add to this (1 mg in commonly used amounts). The German Commission E has concluded that this is not of great concern. 

Fig. 2. Schematic diagram delineating some of the multiple stages of mutagenesis and the interference by flavonoids. 1. Flavonoids induce apoptosis and enhance mutagen detoxification and extrusion from the cell. 2. Flavonoids interfere with the metabolic activation of mutagens and protect DNA by means of their antioxidative action. GST glutathione-S-transferase ROM reactive oxygen metabolites.

Das A, Wang JH and Lien EJ (1994) Carcinogenicity, mutagenicity and cancer preventing activities of flavonoids a structure-system-activity relationship (SSAR) analysis. Prog Drug Res 42, 133-166. 

Despite the apparently beneficial health effects of flavonoids, several studies indicate their mutagenicity and genotoxicity in mammalian systems. This may be due to their activity as pro-... 

Dermatitis has been attributed to D. dasycarpus (29). The root bark of D. dasycarpus is mutagenic in bacteria, due not to dietary flavonoids, but to the furoquino-line alkaloids dictamnine and gamma-fagarine. The clinical relevance of this finding remains to be established. 

Quercetin, a flavonoid component of St. John s wort and several other medicinal plants, has been implicated as a mutagen. However, St. John s wort... 

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