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Evaluation of DNA damage in Chinese toad (Bufo bufo gargarizans) after in vivo exposure to sublethal concentrations of four herbicides using the comet assay

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Abstract

Chinese toad, Bufo bufo gargarizans, is frequently found in rice fields, muddy ponds, wetlands and other aquatic ecosystems in China. Because of its habitat, it has many chances of being exposed to pesticides, such as acetochlor, butachlor, chlorimuron-ethyl, and paraquat, which are extensively used in rice or cereal fields. Amphibians may serve as model organisms for determining the genotoxic effects of pollutants contaminating these areas. In the present study DNA damage was evaluated in the Chinese toad using the comet assay, as a potential tool for the assessment of ecogenotoxicity. The first step was to determine the acute toxicity of the above-mentioned herbicides. In acute tests, tadpoles were exposed to a series of relatively high concentrations of acetochlor, butachlor, chlorimuron-ethyl, and paraquat for 96 h. The LC50 (96 h) of acetochlor, butachlor, chlorimuron-ethyl and paraquat were measured as 0.76, 1.32, 20.1 and 164 mg·l−1, respectively. Also, negative effects on the behavior of tadpoles were observed with acetochlor, butachlor, and paraquat. Secondly, the comet assay was used for detecting DNA damage in Chinese toad tadpoles exposed to sublethal concentrations of four herbicides. Significant (P < 0.05) concentration-dependent increase in DNA damage (as indicated by tail length, tail moment, olive tail moment) were observed from erythrocytes of tadpoles exposed to sublethal concentrations of acetochlor, butachlor, paraquat, and methyl methanesulfonate, except chlorimuron-ethyl. To our knowledge, this is the first report describing the use of Bufo bufo gargarizans for genotoxicity assessment of herbicides.

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Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of National Natural Science Foundation of China (20677008). We thank Mr. Zheng Xiaojun (Senior Experimentalist) and Dr. Wu Huiming for helping with operating the instrument used.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Dong Hua University, Shanghai, 201620, China

    Xiao Hui Yin & Hui Sheng Zhuang

  2. Institutes of Pesticides and Environmental Toxicology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310029, China

    Shao Nan Li, Le Zhang & Guo Nian Zhu

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  1. Xiao Hui Yin
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  2. Shao Nan Li
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Correspondence to Hui Sheng Zhuang.

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Yin, X.H., Li, S.N., Zhang, L. et al. Evaluation of DNA damage in Chinese toad (Bufo bufo gargarizans) after in vivo exposure to sublethal concentrations of four herbicides using the comet assay. Ecotoxicology 17, 280–286 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10646-008-0195-z

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