In vitro antimutagenic activity of Vitex agnus-castus L. essential oils and ethanolic extracts

• This study presents a new antimutagenic resources.
• The results are important in the medical field as well as in the agricultural industry.
• To our knowledge, this is the first study of the antimutagenic activity of the essential oil of the leaves and the ethanolic extract of the seeds of Vitex agnus-castus.

This study investigated the antimutagenic activity of the essential oil of the leaves and the ethanolic extract of the seeds of Vitex agnus-castus, a common plant with both medicinal and economic value. Ames Salmonella/microsome mutagenicity tests showed the essential oil of V. agnus-castus leaves at 0.125, 0.0125, and 0.00125 mg/plate concentrations and the ethanolic extract of V. agnus-castus seeds at 2.5, 0.25, and 0.025 mg/plate concentrations to have antimutagenic effects on Salmonella typhimurium TA98 and TA100. Moreover, neither the essential oils nor the ethanolic extracts exhibited any mutagenic activity themselves. To our knowledge, this is the first study to be conducted on the antimutagenic activities of V. agnus-castus essential oils and extracts and provides important data for the fields of medicine and pharmaceuticals.