C-MITOTIC POTENTIAL OF AQUEOUS LEAF EXTRACT OF MEMECYLON RANDERIANUM SM & MR ALMEIDA.: A PROMISING NATURAL COLCHICINE ANALOG

Abstract

Cytotoxic evaluation of Memecylon randerianum aqueous leaf extract on root tip cells of Allium cepa revealed its C-mitotic potential. Spindle formation was disturbed and abnormal mitotic stages were resulted during cytotoxic assay. Mitotic index decreased and abnormality percentage increased according to a dosage dependent way. The plant extracts induced major chromosomal aberrations that were apportioned to clastogenic and aneugenic viz., nuclear lesions, stickiness, multiple bridges, vagrance, chromosome laggards etc. Among the aneugenic aberrations, severe C-mitotic activity was observed at the prolonged exposure period (24 h) of highest concentration (0.1%), in which C-metaphase becomes the prominent one. Colchicine can induce the effects that interfere with spindle formation and keep the chromosomes in the metaphase plate at a seized condition. The highest percentage of mitotic division was found in the highest concentration at the prolonged exposure period, which strongly supports the presence of colchicine like compounds in the plant extracts. The C-mitotic activity of the plant extract of M. randerianum led to the exploration of a colchicine like compound, which can be exploited mainly in the field of plant breeding for inducing polyploidy. So this finding offers a natural colchicine analog that may be exploited in future.