Abstract
The current study analyzed proteins and nuclear DNA of electric fields (ELF) exposed and nonexposed maize seedlings for different exposure periods using sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE), isozymes, random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD), and comet assay, respectively. SDS-PAGE analysis revealed total of 46 polypeptides bands with different molecular weights ranging from 186.20 to 36.00 KDa. It generated distinctive polymorphism value of 84.62%. Leucine-aminopeptidase, peroxidase, and catalase isozymes showed the highest values of polymorphism (100%) based on zymograms number, relative front (R f), and optical intensity while esterase isozyme generated polymorphism value of 83.33%. Amino acids were analyzed using high-performance liquid chromatography, which revealed the presence of 17 amino acids of variable contents ranging from 22.65% to 28.09%. RAPD revealed that 78 amplified DNA products had highly polymorphism value (95.08%) based on band numbers, with variable sizes ranging from 120 to 992 base pairs and band intensity. Comet assay recorded the highest extent of nuclear DNA damage as percentage of tailed DNA (2.38%) and tail moment unit (5.36) at ELF exposure of maize nuclei for 5 days. The current study concluded that the longer ELF exposing periods had genotoxic stress on macromolecules of maize cells and biomarkers used should be augmented for reliable estimates of genotoxicity after exposure of economic plants to ELF stressors.
Highlights
Plants are unique in their ability to serve as in situ monitors for environmental genotoxins that inflict damage to DNA and cause genotoxic stress, which can reduce plant genome stability, growth, and productivity [1]
Maize seedlings exposed to electric fields (ELF) for 1, 3, and 5 days termed as three treatments (T1, T3, and treatment after 5 days (T5)) while seedlings of group (B) which non-exposed to the electric field termed as zero treatment (T0)
22 bands were polymorphic with 84.62% polymorphism (16 bands were unique with value of 34.04%; 6 bands were nonunique with value of 12.77%) and 4 bands were monomorphic bands
Summary
Plants are unique in their ability to serve as in situ monitors for environmental genotoxins that inflict damage to DNA and cause genotoxic stress, which can reduce plant genome stability, growth, and productivity [1]. As the result of the development of industrialization and technology, an increasing number of man-made electric fields (ELFs) have appeared in living plant environment that produce in all places by numerous sources, including nearby high voltage transmission lines, primary and secondary overhead utility distribution lines, and the electrical grounding system [4]. The final effect of ELF in the number of flowering plants was dependent on voltage and time of exposition of tissues as well as on the electric field polarity [6]. The study of [8] evaluated the effect of electric field intensity and exposing time on some
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