Investigation of cytotoxic, genotoxic and oxidative properties of carvacrol in human blood cells

Abstract

Carvacrol (CVC), a major constituent of genera Origanum and Thymus, is such a substance that has attracted attention because of its wide variety of beneficial biological activities such as antibacterial, antifungal, and anticancer effects. However, there are limited data on the cytogenetic and antioxidant effects of CVC in cultured human blood cells. The aim of this study was to investigate for the first time the genetic, oxidative, and cytotoxic effects of CVC in cultured human blood cells ( n = 5). Human blood cells were treated with CVC (0–200 mg/L) for 24 and 48 h and then cytotoxicity detected by lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release and (3-(4,5-dimethyl-thiazol-2-yl) 2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) (MTT) assay, while DNA damage was also analyzed by micronucleus (MN) assay, chromosomal aberration (CA) assay and 8-oxo-2-deoxyguanosine (8-OH-dG) level. In addition, biochemical parameters (total antioxidant capacity [TAC] and total oxidative stress [TOS]) were examined to determine the oxidative effects. The results of LDH and MTT assays showed that CVC (at concentrations above 100 mg/L) decreased cell viability. In our in vitro test systems, it was observed that CVC had no mutagenic effects on human lymphocytes. On the other hand, CVC (at 50, 75, and 100 mg/L) treatment caused statistically important ( p < 0.05) increases in TAC and TOS levels (at 150 and 200 mg/L) on human lymphocytes. In conclusion, CVC can be a new resource of therapeutics as recognized in this study with their nonmutagenic and antioxidant features.