Mushrooms represent a major and untapped source of potent new pharmaceutical products. The antioxidant, antiinflammatory, antinociceptive, antimutagenic, anticarcinogenic, antitumour, hepatoprotective, nephroprotective and cardioprotective activities of the methanolic extract of Ganoderma lucidum (Fr.) P. Karst. collected from tropical South India were evaluated for the revalidation of its util...

Polyphenols in fruits, vegetables (e.g., flavonols like quercetin) and tea (e.g., catechins such as epigallocatechin gallate) are good antioxidants with antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic properties. In the present study, the Salmonella typhimurium tester strain YG1024 was used in the plate-incorporation test to examine the antimutagenic effect of phenolic compounds, extracted from common beans...

BACKGROUND Rice bran is the outer layer of the rice grain, and contains high amounts of bioactive phytochemicals. Here, we investigated and compared chemopreventive properties of purple and white rice bran extracts. METHODS Rice bran was extracted with dichloromethane and methanol. Chemical constituents in the extracts were analyzed by colorimetric assay and high performance liquid chromatogr...

A typical Brazilian plant, araticum (Annona crassiflora Mart.), is widely used in humans as therapeutic medicine to treat several diseases such as diarrhea, rheumatism and syphilis. It contains acetogenins which present cytotoxic, antitumogenic, and antiparasitic properties. In this study, mutagenic, antimutagenic and cytotoxic effects of araticum leaves ethanolic extract were evaluated by micr...

The use of protective agents (e.g., sulfhydryl compounds, certain vitamins, amino acids, cations, and antibiotics) offers a novel and promising means of dealing with the ever increasing burden of environmental hazards facing man. Through the daily uptake of minimal doses as a prophylactic measure by the most endangered groups of the population or by direct mixing of the appropriate protective a...

DNA damage prevention is an important mechanism involved in cancer prevention by dietary compounds. Armoracia rusticana is cultivated mainly for its roots that are used in the human diet as a pungent spice. The roots represent rich sources of biologically active phytocompounds, which are beneficial for humans. In this study we investigated the modulation of H₂O₂ genotoxicity using the A. rustic...