Genetic damage induced by trophic doses of lead in the neotropical fish Hoplias malabaricus (Characiformes, Erythrinidae) as revealed by the comet assay and chromosomal aberrations

Genetics and Molecular Biology

Marta Margarete Cestari²  Priscilla Maria M. Lemos²  Ciro Alberto De Oliveira Ribeiro¹  João Ricardo M. Alves Costa¹  Emilien Pelletier¹  Marcos V.m. Ferraro²  Mário Sérgio Mantovani¹  Alberto Sergio Fenocchio¹ 

[1] ,Universidade Federal do Paraná Departamento de Genética Curitiba PR ,Brazil

关键词: chromosomal aberrations;    comet assay;    genotoxicity;    Hoplias malabaricus;    lead;    mutagenesis;   

DOI  :  10.1590/S1415-47572004000200023

来源: SciELO

【 摘 要 】

The effects of clastogenic or mutagenic agents have rarely been studied in neotropical fish species exposed to contaminated water. In this study, the genetic damage caused by lead in the widely distributed South American fish, Hoplias malabaricus, was assessed using the comet (SCGE) assay and by testing for chromosomal aberrations. Eighteen specimens were acclimatized to laboratory conditions and then chronically exposed to contaminated food by feeding prey (Cyprinus sp.) injected intraperitoneally with doses of inorganic lead adjusted to give a contamination level of 21 mg of Pb2+.g-1 net weight of H. malabaricus. Three fish were sampled for chromosomal analysis after four doses (18 days) and another three after eight doses (41 days) of lead and the results then compared with three untreated controls kept under lead-free conditions. An additional six treated fish and three controls were sampled for the comet assay after 13 doses (64 days). Exposure to lead significantly increased the frequency of chromosomal aberrations and the frequency of tailed cell nuclei, the latter indicating DNA damage. These results show that H. malabaricus is a useful biological model for screening the clastogenic effects of lead and possibly other xenobiotics. The genetic damage seen here illustrates the need to investigate the potential effects of heavy metals on fish species in South America.

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