Determination of phytotoxicity and cytogenotoxicity due to exposure to particles originating from sugarcane burning using test systems Lactuca sativa L. and Allium cepa L.

ABSTRACT

Sugarcane straw burning generates particulate matter with complex composition resulting in atmosphere pollution. Sugarcane straw sugarcane burning particles (PSSB) contain several chemical compounds that were previously identified to be associated with carcinogenic and mutagenic processes. The aim of the present study was to extract PSSB under lab conditions and subsequently determine phyto- and cytogenotoxicity of these particles using Lactuca sativa L. and Allium cepa L. bioassays. Seeds of lettuce var. Cinderela and onion cv. Vale-Ouro IPA-11 were germinated in Petri dishes containing different concentrations of PSSB at 25, 50, 100, 200 or 300 mg/ml as well as control for 72 hr. Seed germination of lettuce was inhibited by PSSB, in a concentration-dependent manner, accompanied by decreased root growth, suggesting phytotoxic effects. Further, reduction of mitotic index and high number of chromosomal alterations in onion of meristematics cells indicated a cytogenotoxic action attributed to PSSB. Although the chemical composition of PSSB in question has not been determined, the phyto- and cytogenotoxic effects may be linked to the possible presence of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are were identified as the main constituents of particulate matter resulting from burning of sugarcane straw, in addition to exerting adverse biological effects that might result in mutations and cancer. Data demonstrated that the use of plants bioassays might be an important tool for biomonitoring air quality.

KEYWORDS:

• Atmospheric pollution
• particulate matter
• toxicity
• plant bioassays
• chromosomal alterations

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the infrastructure provided by the Caatinga Fauna Management Center and by the Bromatology Laboratory – UNIVASF for carrying out the experiments in this study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

Data supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author, C.V., upon reasonable request or acessing doi: 10.6084/m9.figshare.19388678

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

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Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.