The effect of essential oil of basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) on UV-induced mutagenesis in Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The antimutagenic potential of essential oil (EO) of basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) and its major constituent linalool were studied with the E. coli K12 and S.cerevisiae D7 assays. In the E. coli assay, EO and linalool inhibited UV-induced mutagenesis in a repair-proficient strain, but had no effect on spontaneous mutagenesis in repair-proficient, nucleotide excision repair-deficient, and mismatch-deficient strains. By testing participation of different mechanisms involved in antimutagenesis, it was concluded that the antimutagenic effect against UV-induced mutagenesis involved decrease of protein synthesis and cell proliferation which led to increased efficiency of nucleotide excision repair. An antimutagenic effect of basil derivatives in S. cerevisiae was not detected.