A study of oil of bergamot and its importance as a phototoxic agent. I. Characterization and quantification of the photoactive component.

It is important in the technique of photopatch testing, using oil of bergamot, to have determined the concentration of the active psoralen, bergapten, so as to avoid false negative responses in the assessment of phototoxic reactions. Techniques for assessing the phototoxic components of oil of bergamot are described and quantitative analyses of bergapten, the only significant photoactive compound in the samples examined, are reported. The phototoxicity of bergapten was found to be nearly the same as that of xanthotoxin (8-MOP) in tests on human skin.