Abstract
The use of irrigation water containing cyanobacterial toxins can cause significant impacts in agricultural and consequently environmental health. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects of cyanotoxins (microcystin-LR and saxitoxin) on germination, growth and micronuclei formation in lettuce (Lettuce sativa) and coriander (Coriandrum sativum). Seeds of lettuce and coriander were exposed during 7-9 days to environmentally relevant concentrations of microcystin-LR (MC-LR1= 0.4 µg/L; MC-LR2= 1.0 µg/L; MC-LR3= 5.0 µg/L) and saxitoxin (SX1= 0.02 µg/L; SX2= 0.1 µg/L; SX3= 0.4 µg/L). In germination test, differential responses were observed being lettuce the most affected in the presence of saxitoxin, and coriander to microcystin-LR treatments. Cyanotoxins inhibit seedlings development to both plants species and promote formation of micronuclei in root cells. Cyanotoxins inhibit seed germination, growth and cause DNA damages, but the intensity depends on both the nature of the toxin and plant species. Key words: Cyanobacterial toxin, microcystin-LR, saxitoxin, micronuclei, lettuce, coriander.
Highlights
The occurrence of cyanobacterial blooms has increased significantly in many regions of the world in the last century due to water eutrophication
Due to the limited information, the purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects of microcistin-LR and saxitoxin on germination, growth and micronuclei formation in lettuce and coriander
Microcystin-LR treatment did not interfere with germination of lettuce; on the other hand, saxitoxin inhibited until 70% of germination
Summary
The occurrence of cyanobacterial blooms has increased significantly in many regions of the world in the last century due to water eutrophication. These blooms are hazardous to humans, animals, and plants due to the production of cyanotoxins (Christensen and Khan, 2020). These toxins are secondary metabolites produced by cyanobacteria that trigger harmful effects on cells, tissues or organisms (Carmichael, 1992). Cyanotoxins act on specific organs: hepatotoxins (liver), neurotoxins (nervous system), cytotoxic alkaloids and dermatotoxins (skin), but usually have important side effects (Huang and Zimba, 2019; Kubickova et al, 2019).
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