Analysis of Synthetic Food Colors and FoodPreservatives Inducing Genotoxicity in Garlic(Allium sativum L.) Root Tip Cells

Certain synthetic food additives have been found to induce DNA damage in plant cells, primarily in the form of mutations and chromosomal abnormalities.This research aimed to assess the genotoxic potential of two commonly used food colors (Allura red and tartrazine) and two preservatives (boric acid and sodium benzoate) on the root cells of garlic (Allium sativum L.).Garlic roots were treated with various concentrations of food colors (0.1, 01, and 10 g/L) and food preservatives (1, 2, and 4 g/L) for 24 h.Root tip cells were observed under the microscope to check chromosomal abnormalities.The mitotic index observed a maximum of 11.32% at a 10 g/L concentration of Allura red and 19.88% for tartrazine at a 10 g/L concentration.The mitotic index for boric acid and sodium benzoate was maximum (9.80 and 10.95%, respectively) at a concentration of 4 g/L each.An abnormality index was recorded for Allura red (3.01%) and (2.98%) for tartrazine at a 10 g/L concentration.The abnormality index for boric acid was highest (5.88%) at a concentration of 4 g/L.The abnormality index for sodium benzoate was maximum at 5.17% at 4 g/L.Overall, genotoxicity increased with the increasing concentration of food additives.