Abstract: Purpose and Methods : Antimutagenicity of ethanol ext ract of scorpion and some Chinese medicinal herbs (SEE) was investigated using a S almonella typhimurium/ mammalian microsome assay in the paper. Results :At 25 - 100μl/ plate , SEE had no effect on TA98 revertant s induced by the utimate mutagen , Dexon and neither on TA100 revertant s by the ultimate mutagen , sodium azide (NaN3 ) . But the revertant s of TA98 induced by promutagen , 2 - aminofluorence (2 - AF) was significantly inhibited by SEE at same dosage. The relative revertant s of TA98 were 1985 ±483 、1232 ±176 and 792 ±170 respectively at 25μl/ plate , 50μl/ plate and 100μl/ plate of SEE with 15μg/ plate of 2 - AF. In comparasion with positive cont rol (3182 ±784) , the relative revertant s at 25μl/ plate 、50μl/ plate and 100μl/ plate had significant and very significant statistical difference ( P< 0. 05 and P < 0. 01) and the inhibitory percentages of the relative revertant s were 38. 06 % , 61. 90 % and 75.11 % respectively. It was obvious that the increase of inhibitory percentages deponded upon the dose of SEE.Conclusion : These result s indicated that SEE was a possible inhibitor of 2 - AF. Antimutagenicity of SEE toward 2 - AF could be att ributed primarily to the effect of SEE on S9 mixture.

Key words: ethanol ext ract of scorpion, antimutagenicity, 2 - aminofluorence, Salmonella typhimurium/ mammalian microsome assay