The ancient Indian tradition of growing tulsi (Ocimum sanctum) in the backyard is not without scientific backing.
Research shows that the tulsi, or Indian basil, mitigates the ill-effects of radiation, whether background or nuclear, and could protect cells in patients undergoing radiation therapy for cancer.
Scientists at the DRDO’s Institute of Nuclear Medicines and Allied Sciences, and the Department of Radiobiology, Kasturba Medical College, Manipal, have successfully tested tulsi extracts on mice for its anti-radiation and anti-cancer properties. The DRDO is now preparing a herbal concoction from tulsi that will serve to both prevent and cure the ill-effects of radiation.
In the mouse model, there was no impact on bone marrow after the mice exposed to radiation ingested the tulsi preparation. It is the bone marrow that is affected in case of radiation exposure, and this brings down the immunity level.
The DRDO now proposes to take up human trials, says Dr W. Selvamurthy, chief controller (research and development), DRDO, who presented a research paper on the anti-radiation impact of tulsi extract at the 99th Indian Science Congress, which concluded in Bhubaneswar on Saturday.
“We need to conduct a few more tests and take up phase II trials before it is released for general use,” said Dr Selvamurthy. The DRDO is spending `7 crore on the tulsi project.
Research on the anti-radiation effect of tulsi in animals has been going on in India for the last four decades. Doctors at Kasturba Medical College discovered that tulsi contains a chemical called glutathione, which gives it the anti-radiation properties.