title: Modulating effects of thyme and its major ingredients on oxidative DNA damage in human lymphocytes.
abstract: The present study was carried out to investigate the modulating effects of thyme and its major components against the oxidative DNA damage induced by H(2)O(2). The human lymphocytes with thymol, carvacrol, and gamma-terpinene incubated with or without 0.1 mM H(2)O(2) for 30 min at 37 degrees C and the DNA damage were evaluated by singe cell gel electropheresis (comet assay). Concentrations above 0.1 mM thymol and gamma-terpinene and 0.05 mM carvacrol significantly induced DNA damage in human lymphocytes, but at the smaller concentrations no additional DNA strand breakage has been observed. At the all concentrations studied, gamma-terpinene did not show any protective effect against H(2)O(2) induced oxidative DNA damage, but the phenolic compounds thymol and carvacrol at concentrations below 0.2 and 0.1 mM, respectively, significantly reduced the oxidative DNA damage (p < 0.001). The n-hexane and ethyl acetate fractions prepared from the methanolic extracts of Thymus spicata also were found to inhibit DNA damage.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmaceutical Toxicology and Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Hacettepe University, TR-06100 Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Sevtap
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Aydin
authors.forename: A Ahmet
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Basaran
authors.forename: Nursen
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Basaran
mesh_terms: D000081005:Cyclohexane Monoterpenes; D000081007:Cymenes; D004249:DNA Damage / Q000187:drug effects*; D006801:Humans; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide / Q000494:pharmacology; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000737:chemistry*; D039821:Monoterpenes / Q000494:pharmacology; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction; D013943:Thymol / Q000494:pharmacology; D046930:Thymus Plant / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D000081005:Cyclohexane Monoterpenes; D000081007:Cymenes; D039821:Monoterpenes; D013943:Thymol; C018669:gamma-terpinene; C073316:carvacrol; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide