Root Meristem Cells Of Allium Cepa Research Articles

Assessment of synthetic food dye erythrosine induced cytotoxicity, genotoxicity, biochemical and molecular alterations in Allium cepa root meristematic cells: insights from in silico study.

Synthetic food dyes are being exponentially used in food products and scarce studies regarding their toxicities and safety raise concern. Erythrosine is one of the synthetic food dyes being used in jams, fig, pineapple marmalades, dairy products, soft drinks, pickles, relishes, smoked fish, cheese, ketchup, maraschino cherries and a variety of other foods. In this study the cyto-genotoxic effect of erythrosine was evaluated, using root meristematic cells of Allium cepa for the cellular and molecular alternations at concentrations 0.1, 0.25, 0.5 and 1mg/mL. The results revealed a significant decrease of 57.81% in the mitotic index after 96h at the 0.1mg/mL concentration. In biochemical analysis, the malondialdehyde content increased significantly (5.47-fold), while proline content, catalase activity and superoxide dismutase activity decreased gradually in a concentration-dependent manner showing a maximum decrease of 78.11%, 64.68% and 61.73% respectively at the highest concentration after 96h duration. The comet assay revealed increased DNA damage with increasing concentration and attenuated total reflectance- Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) analysis showed significant alterations in biomolecules as indicated by multivariate analysis, i.e. Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Furthermore, molecular docking demonstrated a strong binding energy (Gbest=-11.46kcal/mol) and an inhibition constant (Ki) of 3.96nM between erythrosine and the DNA minor groove. The present study's findings revealed the cytotoxic and genotoxic potential of erythrosine on A. cepa root cells. Further, the study also proposed the usefulness of A. cepa as a model system for studying the toxicity of food additives.

Exploring the antimitotic, thrombolytic, and cytotoxic properties of lasiosiphon glaucus or gnidia glauca (fresen.) gilg leaf alkaloid extract: insights from experimental and in silico investigations

Plant alkaloids are nitrogen containing secondary metabolites that have wide range of biological properties including anticancer activity. ‘Lasiosiphon glaucus’, or ‘Gnidia glauca (Fresen.) Gilg,’ known for its biological properties, requires exploration to evaluate cytotoxic and anticancer effects. The present study is aimed to evaluate L. glaucus leaf alkaloid extract (LgLAE) for antimitotic, thrombolytic, and cytotoxic properties. LgLAE demonstrated comparable antimitotic efficacy to methotrexate in Allium cepa root meristematic cells. Thrombolytic evaluation showed a maximum observed clot lysis of 41.39 ± 0.21% at 2 mg/100 µL. Cytotoxicity assay shows greater inhibition of MCF-7 (144.51 μg/mL) cancer cell proliferation than MCF-10A cells (409.86 μg/mL), indicating potential cancer-specific effects. Computational analysis revealed strong binding affinities between L. glaucus alkaloids (Ergocristine, Solasodine, Solanocapsine, Delphinine, and Harmidine) and relevant receptors. These findings highlight L. glaucus contains valuable natural compounds with pharmacological effects, particularly in antimitotic, thrombolytic, and cytotoxic effects, it essential for further investigation for cancer treatment.

Reduced Genotoxicity of Gold Nanoparticles With Protein Corona in Allium cepa.

Increased usage of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) in biomedicine, biosensing, diagnostics and cosmetics has undoubtedly facilitated accidental and unintentional release of AuNPs into specific microenvironments. This is raising serious questions concerning adverse effects of AuNPs on off-target cells, tissues and/or organisms. Applications utilizing AuNPs will typically expose the nanoparticles to biological fluids such as cell serum and/or culture media, resulting in the formation of protein corona (PC) on the AuNPs. Evidence for PC altering the toxicological signatures of AuNPs is well studied in animal systems. In this report, we observed significant genotoxicity in Allium cepa root meristematic cells (an off-target bioindicator) treated with high concentrations (≥100 µg/ml) of green-synthesized vanillin capped gold nanoparticles (VAuNPs). In contrast, protein-coated VAuNPs (PC-VAuNPs) of similar concentrations had negligible genotoxic effects. This could be attributed to the change in physicochemical characteristics due to surface functionalization of proteins on VAuNPs and/or differential bioaccumulation of gold ions in root cells. High elemental gold accumulation was evident from µ-XRF mapping in VAuNPs-treated roots compared to treatment with PC-VAuNPs. These data infer that the toxicological signatures of AuNPs are influenced by the biological route that they follow to reach off-target organisms such as plants. Hence, the current findings highlight the genotoxic risk associated with AuNPs, which, due to the enhanced utility, are emerging as new pollutants. As conflicting observations on the toxicity of green-synthesized AuNPs are increasingly reported, we recommend that detailed studies are required to investigate the changes in the toxicological signatures of AuNPs, particularly before and after their interaction with biological media and systems.

In vitro antimitotic and cytotoxic potential of plant extracts: a comparative study of Mucuna pruriens, Asteracantha longifolia and Sphaeranthus indicus

BackgroundPlants have been used in alternative and traditional medicines for the cure of different types of diseases since ancient time. Secondary metabolites from natural sources play a crucial role in the treatment of various ailments. The present study carried out to investigate the phytochemical, antimitotic and cytotoxic activity of methanolic (95%) extracts of Mucuna pruriens seeds, Asteracantha longifolia seeds and Sphaeranthus indicus stems.ResultPhytochemical analysis was performed using qualitative test to confirm the presence of phytochemical such as flavonoids, terpenoids, amino acids, cardiac glycosides, saponins, steroids, tannins, phenols and carbohydrates. The antimitotic activity was screened by using Allium cepa root meristematic cells. Methotrexate (0.1 mg/mL) was used as a standard. The data was analyzed by using software GraphPad Prism, Version 6.0 (GraphPad Software Inc., San Diego, CA) with one-way ANOVA. A statistical difference of p < 0.05 was considered significant in all cases. p value of M. pruriens seeds, A. longifolia seeds and S. indicus stems calculated p = 0.0001 for all plant extracts. Cytotoxic potential of all three plant extracts have been studied on breast cancer cell line MCF7 and lung cancer cell line A549. M. pruriens showed mild cytotoxicity with IC50 values 36.74 μg/mL on MCF7 and 39.42 μg/mL on A549 cell line. A. longifolia showed better activity on MCF7 with IC50 of 12.32 μg/mL and the S. indicus showed the least activity on MCF7 with IC50 of 185.56 μg/mL. The A. longifolia showed better activity on A549 with IC50 of 16.53 μg/mL.ConclusionA. longifolia has significant amount of nearly all phytochemicals as compared to other two plant extracts. It is found that all three plant extracts showed antimitotic activity having p value less than 0.05. The cytotoxicity assay revealed that all plant extracts displayed inhibition of MCF7 and A549 cells lines. A. longifolia showed better activity against MCF7 while M. pruriens possessed mild cytotoxic effect against both MCF7 and A549 cell lines.

Chemotaxonomy of the ethnic antidote Aristolochia indica for aristolochic acid content: Implications of anti-phospholipase activity and genotoxicity study

Ethnopharmacological relevanceAristolochia indica L. (Aristolochiaceae) is a common medicinal plant described in many traditional medicine as well as in Ayurveda used against snakebites. Besides, the plant has also been reported traditionally against fever, rheumatic arthritis, madness, liver ailments, dyspepsia, oedema, leishmaniasis, leprosy, dysmenorrhoea, sexual diseases etc. The plant is known to contain its major bioactive constituent aristolochic acid (AA) known for its anti-snake venom, abortifacient, antimicrobial and antioxidant properties. Materials and methodsThis present work describes a validated, fast and reproducible high performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC) method to estimate AA from the roots of 20 chemotypes of A. indica procured from 20 diverse geographical locations from the state of West Bengal, India. Further, an evidence-based approach was adopted to investigate the reported anti-venom activity of the aqueous extracts of the A. indica roots by assessing its phospholipase A2 (PLA2) inhibitory properties since PLA2 is a major component of many snake-venoms. Finally, the cytotoxicity and genotoxicity of the aqueous root extract of the Purulia (AI 1) chemotype were assessed at various concentrations using Allium cepa root meristematic cells. ResultsThe highest amount of AA (7643.67 μg/g) was determined in the roots of A. indica chemotype collected from Purulia district followed by the chemotypes collected from Murshidabad, Jalpaiguri and Birbhum districts (7398.34, 7345.09 and 6809.97 μg/g respectively). This study not only determines AA in the plants to select pharmacologically elite chemotypes of A. indica, but it also identifies high AA producing A. indica for further domestication and propagation of the plants for pharmacological and industrial applications. The method was validated via analyzing inter-day and intra-day precision, repeatability, reproducibility, instrumental precision, limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) and specificity. Chemotypes with high AA content exhibited superior anti-PLA2 activity by selectively inhibiting human-group PLA2. Moreover, A. indica root extract significantly inhibited mitosis in Allium cepa root tips as a potent clastogen. ConclusionsThe present quick, reproducible and validated HPTLC method provides an easy tool to determine AA in natural A. indica plant populations as well as in food and dietary supplements, a potential antivenin at one hand and a possible cause of aristolochic acid nephropathy (AAN) at another. Besides, the cytotoxic and mitotoxic properties of the root extracts should be used with caution especially for oral administration.

Chromosomal Abnormalities in Allium cepa Induced by Treated Textile Effluents: Spatial and Temporal Variations.

Appropriate effluent treatment processes are expected to significantly reduce the toxicity of effluents before they are released to the natural environment. The present study was aimed to assess the spatial and temporal variations of the physical and chemical water quality parameters of a natural water body receiving treated textile effluents and to assess the chromosomal abnormalities induced by the treated textile effluents. Four sampling sites (A: effluent discharge point; B: 100 m downstream from site A along the tributary; C: 200 m downstream from site A along the tributary; D: 100 m upstream from site A along the tributary) were selected associated to a tributary that received treated textile effluent. The physical and chemical water quality parameters were measured in the composite water samples collected from the study sites, and Allium cepa bioassay was conducted using aged tap water as the control. Sampling was conducted in both rainy and dry seasons. The conductivity, TDS, COD, and colour intensity of the water samples collected from the study sites were significantly higher during the dry season compared to those in the rainy season. Allium cepa root meristematic cells exposed to water samples from sites A, B, and C showed a significantly high interphase and prophase indices compared to those exposed to aged tap water and upstream site during both rainy and dry seasons. The mitotic index of the root tip cells of Allium cepa bulbs exposed to the water samples collected from the effluent discharge point (site A) and from the 100 m downstream site from site A (site B) was significantly lower than that of the other sites in both rainy and dry seasons. However, the mitotic index of the root tip cells of Allium cepa bulbs exposed to the water samples from the upstream site was not significantly different from that of the control treatment during both sampling seasons. The bioassay indicated that the mitotic index and phase index of the root meristematic cells of Allium cepa can be affected by the treated textile effluents released to the water body and the occurrence of C metaphase, chromosomal adherence, bridges, disturbed anaphase, vagrant chromosomes, and chromosomal breaks indicated that the treated textile effluent receiving tributary can possibly contain genotoxic and mutagenic compounds which can induce chromosomal abnormalities.

Relationships between land use and water quality obtained for the evaluation of genotoxic effects in plant bioindicators

Anthropic activities as well as land use and occupation are closely linked to water and soil quality. An alternative to assess their influence on water quality in water bodies is through biomonitoring using Allium cepa as a bioindicator organism. This technique allows the detection of cytogenetic abnormalities in Allium cepa root meristematic cells after contact with analyzed water samples. Thus, we evaluated the genotoxic potential of water samples from the Rio das Antas (Antas River) along the urban perimeter of the city of Irati, Paraná, Brazil. With the aid of GeoEye Satellite high-resolution fused orbital images, we searched for possible relationships between the use and occupation of land around this river. Biomonitoring was performed at three different sampling points. Statistical equality between the negative control and Point 1 and between Points 2 and 3 was obtained using Fisher's test and a Principal Coordinate Analysis (PCoA). The former presented a low frequency of abnormalities chromosomes and the latter presented larger averages. In addition, Point 1 had strong influence of tree vegetation. Points 2 and 3, demonstrated a strong influence of urbanized area, with significant degradation of permanent preservation areas (áreas de preservação permanente – (APP). The results showed remarkable anthropogenic interference to the ecosystem. Furthermore, this indicates importance of an APP watercourses functioning to preserve the quality of the water resources.

Cytogenetic and genotoxic effects of Rosmaniric Acid on Allium cepa L. root meristem cells

Rosmarinic acid (RA) is a natural polyphenol carboxylic acid, an ester of caffeic acid with 3,4-dihydroxyphenyllactic acid, found in many species. Current study was aimed to investigate the mitotic division, chromosomal and genotoxic effects of RA on Allium cepa root meristematic cells. In Allium root growth inhibition test, EC50 value was found as 100 ppm. Three concentrations (50, 100, and 200 ppm) of RA under different exposure periods (24, 48, 72 and 96 h) were employed to onion tuber roots. Distilled water and methyl methane sulfonate (MMS, 10 ppm) were used as a negative and positive control, respectively. 100 (except 24 h) and 200 ppm of RA significantly decreased mitotic index (MI). There was an increase of total chromosomal aberrations (CAs) at 50 ppm and simultaneous decrease of CAs at 200 ppm concentrations (p < 0.05). A significant increase in DNA damage was also observed at 200 ppm by Comet assay. Quantitative analysis of RA in A. cepa root meristem cells was also done by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Further investigations are required to explore the molecular mechanism involved in the cytotoxicity and genotoxicity of RA on plants.

Assessment of anticytotoxic effect of lichen Cladonia foliacae extract on Allium cepa root tips.

The aim of this study is to investigate the protective effect of lichen Cladonia foliacae (Huds.) (CF) on hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced toxicity through cell death, chromosome aberrations, mitotic index, oxidative stress parameters, and DNA damage in a Allium cepa root meristematic cells. Any chemical was not given for control group. Two doses of H2O2 (3 and 7%) were given to the roots for 1h and the root tips were treated with CF water extract (50 and 100μL) with increasing times for treatment groups. The roots were taken from control and treatment groups, and mitotic index, cell death, and chromosome aberrations were performed by light microscope. Changing antioxidant capacity of roots was revealed by FRAP and TEAC assay. Also, DNA damage was measured by comet assay and RAPD-PCR technique. Chromosome aberration values were obtained with increasing concentrations with longer treatment times, such as chromosome bridge, vagrant, and polyploidy in both groups. Increasing exposure doses of H2O2 caused decreasing mitotic index values at 72h. TEAC and FRAP assay demonstrated that roots' capacity of antioxidant was altered by increasing concentrations of H2O2. The tail DNA% and tail length significantly increased in all exposure times when compared to control group. Three and seven percent of H2O2 caused the genotoxic effect on genetic material at 72h according to RAPD-PCR technique. Increasing the doses of H2O2 resulted in increased toxicity to all studied parameters of A. cepa, but CF extract altered all changing parameters of A. cepa root cell. The H2O2 tested in this study have cytotoxic and mutagenic potential, but extract of CF was protective against H2O2 caused toxicological changes. But, it did not protect completely in the A. cepa root meristematic cells.

Toxicity evaluation of waste effluent from cassava-processing factory in lagos state, nigeria using the &lt;i&gt;Allium cepa&lt;/i&gt; assay

Mutagenic and genotoxic effects of cassava wastewater (CWW) were investigated by assay of Allium cepa root meristematic cells. The physicochemical parameters of the wastewater samples were also determined. In Allium root growth inhibition test, experimental onion bulbs were cultivated in various concentrations of the CWW and distilled water was used as a negative control. After 72 h, the root tips from the treated bulb were processed for cytological studies by orcein squash technique. The mean lengths of root bundles were obtained and effective concentration (EC) values calculated. The cytotoxic effects on the onion root tips showed strong growth retardation at high concentrations of the effluent with EC value of 5.67%. The mitotic index (MI) 50 rapidly decreased with increasing effluent concentration compared to control. There was significant increase in frequency of chromosome aberrations (stickiness, c-mitosis, vagrant, bridged fragment, binuclei, multipolar anaphase, attached chromosome and laggard chromosome) in root tip meristem cells of Allium cepa at all tested concentrations. At lower concentrations (0.005%), binuclei, (0.5%), vagrant chromosome and (1.0%), bridged fragment were the most common aberrations observed while at higher concentrations, (100 %), c-mitosis, vagrant and bridged fragment were the typical aberrations observed. The results indicate that the effluent samples collected were highly mutagenic. The results of physicochemical analysis revealed that the concentrations of some parameters (turbidity, chemical oxygen demand (COD), biological oxygen demand (BOD), conductivity, total dissolved solid (TDS), total suspended solid (TSS), sulphate, nitrate, phosphate and metals-copper, cobalt, chromium, iron, manganese, magnesium, nickel, cadmium, lead, sodium, potassium and calcium) were above the maximum permissible limit set by world health organization (WHO) and could partly be correlated with the toxicity of wastewater. The findings indicate that the substances contained in the cassava effluents may be toxic to living organisms and may pollute the environment if untreated. Keywords : Mutagenicity, genotoxicity, cassava wastewater, chromosomal aberration, mitotic index, cyanide, Allium cepa.

ANTIMUTAGENICS EFFECTS OF STIGMASTEROL ON TWO SALT STRESSED Lupinus termis CULTIVARS

The present work was carried out to examine the effect of exogenous application of stigmasterol on mitotic cell division; some growth parameters and protein banding pattern using two salt stressed Lupinus termis cultivars (cv. Giza 1 and Giza 2). On the other hand, the mutagenic and the antimutagenic effect of stigmasterol were studied using Allium cepa assay. The results of germination percentage revealed that cv. Giza 2 had higher response to the interaction between salinity and stigmasterol than cv. Giza 1. Also, highly significant inhibition in growth parameters (shoot and root growth) by increasing the salinity stress in Giza 1 than Giza 2 and this inhibition was significantly alleviated with stigmasterol treatment. Salinity induced a considerable variation in the protein patterns among these cultivars. These changes have been appeared in the novel expression of some polypeptides, the absence of the other and the over expression of a third class of polypeptides. Treatment with sodium chloride (100 and 200 Mm) has mitoclassic impact on cell division. Few types of mitotic abnormalities were induced in different treatments. Stigmasterol treatments were minimize the inhibition effect of NaCl and showed a considerable increase in the mitotic index. This study detected that stigmasterol has antimutagenic effect against sodium chloride that induced chromosomal aberrations in Allium cepa root meristematic cells.

All aspect of toxic effect of brilliant blue and sunset yellow in Allium cepa roots.

Substances added to food are considerable for survival and are the oldest technologies used in preservation, sweetening and coloring. This work was conducted to evaluate the toxicity of the food additives sunset yellow (SY) and brilliant blue (BB) on Allium cepa root meristematic cells. Control and treatment groups were created from germinated roots. Group 1 (control group) did not receive chemicals. Group 2 (SY or BB-treatment group), received increasing doses of SY (25, 50, 100 and 500ppm) and BB (100, 200, 400 and 500ppm) with time periodsof 24, 48 and 72h. After different treatment periods, the roots were obtained from all groups and EC50 concentrations, cell death, chromosome aberrations, mitotic index were observed by a light microscopy. Changing antioxidant capacity of roots was determined by FRAP and TEAC assay. Also, DNA damage was measured by comet assay and RAPD-PCR technique. Approximately 50 and 200ppm were accepted as EC50 value for SY and BB, respectively. Chromosome aberration values were obtained with increasing concentrations and longer treatment times such as chromosome bridge, C-mitosis, micronucleus, chromosome mis-segregation in both groups. Increasing exposure doses of SY and BB caused decreasing mitotic index values at 72h. FRAP and TEAC assay showed that antioxidant capacity of roots was decreased by increasing concentrations of SY and BB. The tail DNA% and tail length significantly increased for all exposure times when compared to the control group. 50 and 200ppm of SY and BB caused a genotoxic effect on genetic material at 72h according to RAPD-PCR. Increasing the doses of SY and BB resulted in increased toxicity to all studied parameters of A. cepa. In conclusion, the SY and BB tested in this study have cytotoxic and mutagenic potential. Furthermore, SY is more harmful than BB for use in the A. cepa root meristematic cells.

Phytotoxicity and cytotoxicity of Citrus aurantiifolia essential oil and its major constituents: Limonene and citral

The essential oils are fast emerging as the source of natural herbicides owing to their environmentally benign properties. The focus of the present study, thus, was to investigate the phytotoxicity and cytotoxicity of Citrus aurantiifolia oil, and its major constituents-citral and limonene. C. aurantiifolia oil was selected due to its extreme commercialisation and safe nature. GC–MS analysis revealed that C. aurantiifolia oil is rich in monoterpenes (83.93%), with limonene (40.92%) and citral (27.46%) as the major compounds. Phytotoxicity was assessed against three agricultural weeds, Avena fatua, Echinochloa crus-galli and Phalaris minor, at concentration ranging from 0.10–1.50mg/ml. Percent germination, IC50 value and seedling growth (root and coleoptile length) were significantly reduced in a dose-response manner. C. aurantiifolia oil, citral and limonene caused alteration in the cell cycle of Allium cepa root meristematic cells as evidenced by decrease in mitotic index (MI) and increase in chromosomal aberrations at progressive concentrations (0.01–0.10mg/ml) and time periods (3h and 24h). Cytotoxic evaluation confirmed mitodepressive effect of the tested volatiles though the intensity was variable. Overall, citral was the most toxic followed by C. aurantiifolia oil and limonene. The significant phytotoxic activity of C. aurantiifolia oil and citral suggests the possibility of being developed into eco-friendly and acceptable products for weed management in agriculture system.

Cytotoxic and apoptotic activities of extract of Amaranthus spinosus L. in Allium cepa and human erythrocytes.

The present study examined the apoptosis inducing effects of Amaranthus spinosus L. aqueous extract in Allium cepa root meristematic cells and human erythrocytes. Cytogenetic assay revealed many apoptosis inducing cytogenetic aberrations viz., cytoplasmic breakage, cytoplasmic disintegration, cytoplasmic shrinkage, receding of cytoplasm, cytoplasmic vacuolation, enucleated cell, ghost cell, nuclear vacuolation, nuclear fragmentation and nuclear disintegration. A remarkable modification of red blood cell surface morphology was observed in the result of RBC assay. The treated RBCs show membrane blebbing and shrinkage, features typical for apoptosis in nucleated cells. Significant induction of cell death was observed in treated Allium root tip cells after Evans blue staining, disclosing the membrane damage potential of the plant extract. TTC assay results in reduced mitochondrial/metabolic activity in Allium root tip cells after treatment, designating the adverse effect of plant extract on mitochondrial respiratory chain. These results confirm the apoptosis inducing potential of A. spinosus extract. Confirming the present results by further in vitro studies, it can be effectively targeted against cell proliferation during cancer treatment by inducing apoptosis. Thus from the present investigation it can be concluded that the aqueous extract of A. spinosus exhibited apoptosis induction and cytotoxic activities.

Genotoxic and antigenotoxic potential of the aqueous leaf extracts of Amaranthus spinosus Linn. using Allium cepa assay

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the possible genotoxic effects of A. spinosus leaf extracts on Allium cepa root meristematic cells and its antigenotoxic effects against H2O2-induced genetic damage in A. cepa. The excessive reduction in mitotic index (MI) (A4, 3h, 23.37±1.41) and extremely significant (P<0.001) levels of clastogenicity (A4, 3h, 98.14±0.70) was observed after genotoxicity assay. The clastogenic abnormalities observed include bizarre nucleus, chromosome bridges, cytomixis, etc. In antigenotoxicity studies, initial toxicity was induced by two concentrations (7% and 3%) of H2O2. Higher percentage of nuclear lesions in treatment with H2O2 (99.27±0.19) and its significant reduction after modulatory treatment (5mg/L; 32.25±7.69) was observed in the results, and indicates the chemopreventive activity of the plant extract at a critical concentration (5mg/L). Here, the extent of antimutagenicity at this specific concentration (5mg/L) was strong as the percentage of inhibition was greater than 40% (67.51±8.68). The results demonstrated that the aqueous plant extract of A. spinosus have the ability to inhibit the oxidative damage induced by the direct-acting mutagen (H2O2) at a precise concentration.

Mutagenicity and genotoxicity of drinking water in Guelma region, Algeria.

In this study, a battery of genotoxicity assays for monitoring drinking water was performed to assess the quality of the water resulting from the treatment plants. Five different types of samples were collected: raw water (P1), treated after pre-chlorination (P2), treated after decantation (P3), treated post-chlorination (P4), and consumers' taps (P5-P12). This study aims to evaluate the formation/occurrence of mutagenic and/or genotoxic compounds in surface drinking waters treated with chlorine disinfectant, during four seasonal experiments: summer, autumn, winter, and spring between 2012 and 2013 by bacterial reverse mutation assay in both Salmonella typhimurium TA98 and TA100 strains with or without metabolic activation system (S9 mix) and Allium cepa root meristematic cells, respectively. All of water samples, except at P1, P2, and P5 in summer; P1 in autumn; and P1 and P3-P12 in spring without S9 mix, and at P1 and P2 in summer and P6 and P8-P12 in spring with S9 mix, were found to be mutagenic in S. typhimurium TA98. However, only P11 and P12 in winter were found to be mutagenic for TA100 without S9 mix. The tested preparations in Allium anaphase-telophase test revealed a significant decrease in mitotic index (MI) and a simultaneous increase in chromosome aberrations (CAs) compared to the control. The bridge, stickiness, vagrant chromosomes, and disturbed chromosome aberrations were observed in anaphase-telophase cells. Physicochemical analysis, trihalomethanes (THMs), romoform (CHBr3), chloroform (CHCl3), bromodichloromethane (CHBrCl2), and dibromochloromethane (CHBr2Cl) levels in water samples were also determined. The results show also that this short-term battery tests are applicable in the routine monitoring of drinking water quality before and after distribution.

Potential cytotoxic effect of Anilofos by using Allium cepa assay.

Cytogenetic effects of Anilofos which was widely used in agriculture, was evaluated in Allium cepa root meristematic cells. In the Allium root growth inhibition test EC50 value was determined 50ppm and 1/2× EC50 (25ppm), EC50 (50ppm) and 2×EC50 (100ppm) concentrations of Anilofos were applied to onion roots. A negative and positive control were used in the experiment in parallel. According to results mitotic index decreased with increasing the Anilofos concentrations in all application groups and each exposure time, while disturbed anaphase-telophase, choromosome laggard(s), stickiness and anaphase bridge(s) were observed. In anaphase-telophase cells, c-metaphase, disturbed nucleus and binuclear cells were observed in other anomalies. The results were also analyzed statistically by using Dunnett t test (2-tailed) and all concentrations of Anilofos were found significant.

Evaluation of genotoxic and mutagenic effects of aqueous extract from aerial parts of Linaria genistifolia subsp. genistifolia

Genotoxic and mutagenic effects of aqueous extract from aerial parts Linaria genistifolia (L.) Mill. subsp. genistifolia, Plantaginaceae (Lg-ext) were investigated by using both Allium cepa root meristematic cells and bacterial reverse mutation assay in Salmonella typhimurium TA98 and TA100 with or without metabolic activation system (S9), respectively. In Allium root growth inhibition test, EC50 value was determined approximately 15 g/L and 0.5xEC50, EC50 and 2xEC50 concentrations of Lg-ext were introduced to onion tuber roots and distilled water and methyl methane sulfonate (MMS, 10 ppm) used as a negative and positive control, respectively. The characteristic effect caused by tested preparations was an increase of mitotic index (MI) in 7.5 g/L and 15 g/L (except 24 and 96 h) and simultaneous decrease of MI in 30 g/L and in MMS. While stickiness, bridges, chromosome laggards and disturbed anaphase-telophase were observed in anaphase-telophase cells, c-metaphase, pro-metaphase, polyploidy and binuclear cells were observed in other cells. Lg-ext was not found to be mutagenic on S. typhimurium TA 98 and TA100 with or without S9. The results were also analyzed statistically by using SPSS for Windows, and Duncan's multiple range tests were performed respectively. These results indicate that Lg-ext exhibits genotoxic activity in A. cepa root meristematic cells but not mutagenic activity in Ames test system

Genotoxic and mutagenic effects of aqueous extract from aerial parts of Achillea teretifolia

Genotoxic and mutagenic effects of aqueous extract from aerial parts of Achillea teretifolia (At-ext) were investigated using both Allium cepa root meristematic cells and a short-term mutation assay in Salmonella typhimurium with TA98 and TA100 strains in the presence or absence of S9 mix, respectively. In the Allium tests, EC_{50} value was determined as 50 g/L, and 0.5 × EC_{50}, EC_{50}, and 2 × EC_{50} concentrations of At-ext were applied to onion tuber roots. Methyl methane sulfonate (MMS, 10 ppm) and distilled water were used as positive and negative controls, respectively. The mitotic index (MI) increased in all concentrations in comparison to control at each exposure time except 25 and 50 g/L at 12 h. While stickiness, chromosome laggards, bridges, and disturbed anaphase-telophase were observed in anaphase-telophase cells, pro-metaphase, c-metaphase, polyploidy, and binuclear cells were observed in other cells. It was determined that At-ext have no mutagenic effect on S. typhimurium TA98 and TA100 strains in the presence or absence of S9 mix. The results were statistically analyzed in SPSS using Duncan's multiple range test. These results indicate that At-ext has genotoxic activity in A. cepa root meristematic cells.

The effects of the anthocyanin-rich extract from red cabbage leaves on Allium cepa L. root tip cell ultrastructure

The effect of exogenously applied 250 μM anthocyanin-rich (ATH-rich) extract from red cabbage leaves on the ultrastructure of Allium cepa root meristematic cells was investigated. The tested extract slightly affected mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum (ER), Golgi apparatus and vacuoles. In the presence of ATH, 62% of mitochondria converted to condensed type. In addition swollen, circular ER cisternae were sporadically observed. In the ATH-treated roots, one third of Golgi structures was characterized by the reduced number of vesicles. Moreover in 54% of vacuoles, the electron-dense granular and circular material appeared. Additionally, in the cytoplasm, the presence of numerous multivesicular bodies (MVB) was noticed. The observed ultrastructural modifications of mitochondria, and presumably also ER, probably resulted from the ability of an ATH to affect mitochondrial respiratory activity. The other changes in A. cepa root meristematic cell ultrastructure were connected with the transport of exogenously applied ATH into vacuoles. It seems that they are transported from the plasmolemma to the vacuole by multvesicular bodies (MVB), and there trapped by anthocyanic vacuolar inclusions (AVIs). However, none of the observed ultrastructural changes seemed to disturb cell functions, therefore the ATH-rich extract from red cabbage leaves may be regarded as cell-friendly and can be safely used as a detoxifying agent against heavy metal poisoning, as it is more and more often postulated.