Estimation of Toxicity and Genotoxicity of Water, Bottom Sediments and Submerged Macrophyte Elodea canadensis of the Yenisei River in the Presence or Absence of Americium-241

Abstract

Toxicity and genotoxicity of one of the most widely spread species of aqueous plants of the Yenisei River – Elodea canadensis and bottom sediments of the Yenisei River containing 241Am have been evaluated for the first time. It is shown that the suspensions and extracts of plants or bottom sediments which do not contain 241Am, inherently decrease the survival of bacterial cells of specific strains as compared to the control samples. Cell death of E. coli in the aqueous plants accumulating 241Am was observed to be even higher, which is consistent with the toxicity of the control samples of aqueous solutions of 241Am salts. Non-radioactive suspensions of the control samples of the plants and bottom sediments also slightly influenced the survival of the S. typhimurium TA98 cells, whereas their survival abruptly decreased in the presence of 241Am. The samples of the bottom sediments without 241Am hardly influenced the «frequency of His reversions» of the indicator S. typhimurium. In the suspensions of the 241Am-containing bottom sediments a dose-dependent effect was observed both in the «frequency of reversions» and in the quantity of the detected His revertants in the S. typhimurium TA98 strain.