Abstract:
The radioprotective effects of Noni Juice on the bone marrow of irradiated Mus musculus
L. (7-week old IRC strain) was studied using the micronucleus test. Five mice were used
for each of the six groups: negative and positive control, 25%, 50%, 75%, 100%
treatment. Both negative and positive control groups were not treated with Noni Juice.
However the negative control was not irradiated. Four different concentrations, a mixture
of distilled water and commercial Noni Juice, were administered via oral gavage to mice
in their specific groups during the 15-day feeding schedule. A day (24H) after the last
treatment, the mice were irradiated (6 Gy of Gamma radiation). Two days (48H) after
irradiation, the mice were sacrificed and the femur was extracted. The bone marrow
cells were collected and slides were prepared. One thousand polychromatic erythrocytes
(PCE) were screened for the presence of micronucleus per mouse. The mean frequency
of micro nucleated PCE were as follows: negative control, 15; positive control, 45; 25%
treatment, 21; 50% treatment, 18; 75% treatment, 11; 100% treatment, 7. The Kruskal-
Wallis Test showed that the groups’ responses varied (a=0.05). Multiple comparisons
showed that there were significant differences between: (1) 25% and 100% treatment
group; (2) positive control group and 75% treatment group; (3) positive control group
and 100% treatment group, thus indicating that Noni Juice is effective in inhibiting
micronucleus formation at high concentrations. The results also showed that
radioprotective potential of Noni Juice follows a dose-dependent pattern.
