Alege G. O. and Ojomah B. O.
The cytotoxic effects of Aloe vera leaf extract at different levels of concentrations on the mitotic cell division of Allium sativum root tip cells was investigated. The root tips of Allium sativum from the same clove were grown in different concentrations of Aloe vera gel extracts (0%, 25%, 50%, 75% and 100%) and harvested between 7:30am and 8:30am for cytological studies. Pretreatment, fixation, hydrolysis, squashing and staining of the cells for mitotic study were carried out and chromosome counts were done under X400 magnification of the light microscope. Observation in this study shows that the addition of the gel extracts induces two major chromosomal aberrations which include binucleate cells and C-mitotic cells. The result also revealed that no dosage of Aloe vera gel extract is completely safe from inducing mutagenic effect on the root tips of Allium sativum. Further investigations are recommended to ascertain the mutagenic effect of the consumption of Aloe vera gel on man.
