Cycasin: Radiomimetic Effect

Teas, Howard J.; Sax, Hally Jolivette; Sax, Karl

doi:10.1126/science.149.3683.541

Cited by 38 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…In previous tests we found that cycasin, which produces cancer in cattle who eat the leaves of Cycad circinalis, produces chromosome aberration in onion root tips at very low concentrations (Teas and Sax 1965). Veratrum californicum when eaten by pregnant ewes produces abortion and birth defects (Binns et al 1960).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Possible Mutagenic Hazards of Some Food Additives, Beverages and Insecticides

Sax¹,

Sax²

1968

The Japanese journal of genetics

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It has long been known that radiomimetic chemical agents which produce chromosome aberrations in plant and animal cells may also produce mutations.The early discovery by Kihlman and Levan (1949) that caffeine induces aberrations in plant chromosomes and the more recent report by Ostertag (1966) that caffeine breaks human chromosomes has led to further tests of the radiomimetic effect of beverages, food additives and home insecticides. Agents which break plant chromosomes may not break animal chromosomes, but the correlation is high (Kihlman 1966). The onion root tip technique provides a rapid method for making preliminary tests of suspected radiomimetic agents. MATERIALS AND METHODSThe agents to be tested were made up in concentrations which permit essentially normal growth of the onion root tips. Ten cc of the solution was poured over 5 layers of paper toweling in a petri dish and about 100 onion seeds were sown on the moist paper. When the roots were 0.5-1.0 cm long, usually in 3 days, they were fixed in alcohol-acetic acid for 24 hours and then transferred to alcohol until the aceto-carmine smears were made. The chromosome aberrations, which were scored at anaphase, consisted of acentric fragments and dicentric bridges.There was considerable variations in aberration frequency, but the analysis of 10 root tips, each with an average of more than 100 anaphases, for each test, gave reasonably consistent results. RESULTSThe fantastic increase in the use of artificial sweeteners in beverages and food products in recent years, and the controversy regarding their use, led us to test the radiomimetic effects of "Sucaryl", which contains 8 % of sodium cyclamate and 0.8 % of saccharin; and saccharin tablets which contain 1/4 grain of saccharin.At the concentrations recommended, 6 drops of sucaryl per 6 oz. cup or 1 saccharin tablet per cup, the aberration frequency did not exceed that of the controls. At relatively high concentrations both agents were radiomimetic.For comparative purposes tests of moderate concentrations of sugar and salt were included. Higher concentrations of sugar greatly retared growth of the root tips. The results are shown in Table 1.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Possible Mutagenic Hazards of Some Food Additives, Beverages and Insecticides

Sax¹,

Sax²

1968

The Japanese journal of genetics

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“…Possible toxic and behavioural effects of cycad allelochemicals on insects or other invertebrates have barely been investigated: MAM induced mutations in Drosophila (Teas and Dyson 1967) and cycasin deterred ants from sugar water (Bowers and Larin 1989). Onion roots grown in cycasin solution showed chromosome aberrations (Teas et al 1965), a reminder of the potential risk of production of defensive substances for the producing plant itself.…”

Section: Cycad Toxinsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cycads: their evolution, toxins, herbivores and insect pollinators

Schneider¹,

Wink

Sporer

et al. 2002

Naturwissenschaften

132

125

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Palaeobiological evidence indicates that gymnosperms were wind-pollinated and that insect pollination began in angiosperms in the Lower Cretaceous (ca. 135 mya) leading to close associations between higher plants and their pollinators. Cycads, which were widespread and pervasive throughout the Mesozoic (250-65 mya) are among the most primitive living seed-plants found today. Because pollination by beetles and by thrips has now been detected in several modern cycads, it is attractive to speculate that some insects and cycads had already developed similar mutualistic interactions in the Triassic (250-205 mya), long before the advent of angiosperms. We also draw attention to another key factor in this insect-plant relationship, namely secondary, defensive plant substances which must always have controlled interspecific interactions. Cycads mainly produce toxic azoglucosides and neurotoxic non-protein amino acids (e.g. BMAA), which apparently are crucial elements in the development and maintenance of mutualism (pollination) and parasitism (herbivory) by cycad-linked herbivores. We now add new results on the uptake and storage of the main toxin, cycasin, of the Mexican cycad Zamia furfuracea by its pollinator, the weevil Rhopalotria mollis, and by a specialist herbivore of Zamia integrifolia, the aposematic Atala butterfly Eumaeus atala.

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“…The ease with which MAM methylates phenate and carboxylate groups indicates that methylated derivatives of cellular constituents other than purine bases can be expected in tissues treated with MAM in vivo. Teas, Sax & Sax (1965) have demonstrated the radiomimetic effect of cycasin as measured by the frequency of induction of chromosome aberrations in root-tip cells of Allium cepa. Presumably, cycasin was hydrolysed by fl-glucosidase in the plant and the active constituent was MAM.…”

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confidence: 99%