J Ethnopharmacol 1993 Jan;38(1):63-77

Mutagenic and antimutagenic activities of Uncaria tomentosa and its extracts.

Rizzi R, Re F, Bianchi A, De Feo V, de Simone F, Bianchi L, Stivala LA.

Departmento di Farmacologia, Chemioterapia e Tossicologia Medica, Universita degli Studi di Milano, Italy.

Mutagenic and antimutagenic activities of extracts and chromatographic fractions of Uncaria tomentosa bark are reported. The plant extracts and fractions show no mutagenic effect in different strains of Salmonella typhimurium with and without metabolic activation. However, the plant extracts and fractions show a protective antimutagenic effect in vitro against photomutagenesis induced by 8-methoxy-psoralen (8-MOP) plus UVA in S. typhimurium TA 102. A decoction of U. tomentosa ingested daily for 15 days by a smoker decreased the mutagenicity induced in S. typhimurium TA98 and TA100 by the subject's urine.