Abstract
Heavy metals have the potential to interact and induce several stress responses in the plants; thus, effects of heavy metal stress on DNA damages and total antioxidants level in Urtica dioica leaves and stems were investigated. The samples are sampled from areas with different metal exposition. Metal content was analyzed by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Atomic Emission Spectrometer (ICP-AES), for total antioxidants level assessment the Ferric-Reducing Antioxidant Power (FRAP) assay was used, and genomic DNA isolation from frozen plant samples was performed to obtain DNA fingerprints of investigated plant. It was found that heavy metal contents in stems generally changed synchronously with those in leaves of the plant, and extraneous metals led to imbalance of mineral nutrient elements. DNA damages were investigated by Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) technique, and the results demonstrated that the samples exposed to metals yielded a large number of new fragments (total 12) in comparison with the control sample. This study showed that DNA stability is highly affected by metal pollution which was identified by RAPD markers. Results suggested that heavy metal stress influences antioxidant status and also induces DNA damages in U. dioica which may help to understand the mechanisms of metals genotoxicity.
Highlights
Metals constitute one of the major groups of genotoxic environmental pollutants possessing serious threat to human as well as environmental well-being
DNA damages were investigated by Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) technique, and the results demonstrated that the samples exposed to metals yielded a large number of new fragments in comparison with the control sample
With estimated lead emission of 83 tons per year according to the National Environmental Action Plan (NEAP) [16], and there were several investigations in the region of Veles for heavy metals contents [17,18,19,20]
Summary
Metals constitute one of the major groups of genotoxic environmental pollutants possessing serious threat to human as well as environmental well-being. Heavy metal stress in all living organisms often results in the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which are relatively reactive compared to molecular oxygen and potentially toxic [1, 2]. Tolerance to heavy metal stress has been correlated with efficient antioxidative defense system, as shown by many authors [2,3,4]. Heavy metals induce several cellular stress responses and damage to different cellular components such as membranes, proteins, and DNA. DNA-based techniques, like Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD), is used to evaluate the variation at the DNA level, and differences can clearly be shown when comparing DNA fingerprints from individuals exposed and/or nonexposed to genotoxic agents [6,7,8,9,10]
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