Genotoxicity testing of 3,4,5-trimethylfuran-2(5H)-one, a compound from plant-derived smoke with germination inhibitory activity

Plant-derived smoke and certain smoke compounds improve seed germination and enhance seedling growth of many species. Thus, smoke-infused water and the active smoke-derived compounds have the potential to be used in different agricultural and horticultural applications. However, despite these interesting and potentially practical properties, it should also be ascertained whether such compounds may pose a health risk, particularly if they are to be used in the production of food or fodder crops. Amongst some of the aspects that would be important to understand are any possible genotoxic properties that the compounds may possess due to potential carry-over effects. Here, we report on a genotoxicity study of 3,4,5-trimethylfuran-2(5H)-one, a compound from plant-derived smoke previously shown to have germination inhibitory activity. Using two in vitro tests, namely the bacterial VITOTOX® test (with/without S9 metabolic activation) and the cytome assay on human C3A cells, no genotoxicity or toxicity was found. Furthermore, these results support a previous study where a related smoke-derived compound with germination promoting properties was investigated.