Investigation of the biological effects of black cumin (Nigella sativa L.) oil on Caenorhabditis elegans

As in many countries, black cumin is a herbaceous plant that belongs to the family Ranunculaceae, which is widely used in folk medicine in our country. In many studies, it has been reported that the products obtained from black seed and black seed components have many beneficial health effects. Among these, there are a few studies that show that the products and/or components of black cumin have an antihelmintic/antiparasitic effect. Caenorhabditis elegans is a free living nematode member of the Rhabditidae family. C. elegans is one of the most commonly used organism in biological studies. In this study, numerous positive health effects of black seed oil on life expectancy, heat stress resistance, oxidative stress resistance, ovulation potential and live offspring potential, in addition to antihelmintic/antiparasitic effect, have been aimedto test directly by working on nematodes. In this context, 7 different experimental groups were performed including control group, antihelmintic control group and doses containing 0,5 mg/ml and 1 mg/ml, 2 mg/ml, 4 mg/ml, 8 mg/ml black seed oil. For each experimental procedures five sets were studied. In the normal life span determination of C. elegans, a normal ambient temperature of 20°C was used. The heat stress test was carried out at a non-lethal temperature of 37°. Oxidative stress test was performedin paraquat containin mediums. From the first day of egg laying, for egg laying potential test, egg counts were made at the same day time by changing culture media every day. In the live offspring potential experiment, the number of live individuals who hatched was counted and notedat the same day time every day. At the end of the research, it was determined that the black seed oil was significantly shortened the lifespan of C. elegans in all experimental groups. Moreover, we found that temperature stress resistance study significantly reduced the life span in other experimental groups except the 1 mg/ml concentration group of black seed oil. In addition, it was found that oxidative stress resistance study significantly shortened the lifespan of the other experimental groups except 0,5 mg/ml and 1 mg/ml. The results of the effect on egg laying potential test were found statistically insignificant compared to the control group. When the live offspring potential was examined, it was observed that there were no living individuals in any experimental group except control and antihelminthic control groups. When the control and antihelminthic control groups were compared in the live offspring potential study, the results were not statistically significant.