GENOTOXIC EFFECTS OF Eclipta alba AND Euphorbia hirta ON Alliumcepa MERISTAMATIC TISSUE

The genotoxic effects of aqueous extracts of two medicinal plants Eclipta alba and Euphorbia hirta was evaluated using Allium cepa. The extracts were prepared with water. Onion bulbs were exposed to 1, 5, 10, 25 and 50%; and 1, 2.5, 5, 10 and 20% concentrations (v/v) of each of the extracts for macroscopic and microscopic analyses, respectively. There was concentration-dependent and statistically significant (P < 0.05) inhibition of root growth by the extracts when compared with the control. The EC50 obtained for decoctions of Eclipta alba and Euphorbia hirta were 1.4 and 0.8%, respectively. It was 2.5 and 0.7 % for the squeezed extracts of Eclipta alba and Euphorbia hirta respectively. All the tested extracts were observed to have mitodepressive effects on cell division and induced mitotic spindle disturbance in Allium cepa. These results suggest an inhibitory, mitodepressive and turbagenic activities of the aqueous extracts of Eclipta alba and Euphorbia hirta on Allium cepa.