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Mutagenic and genotoxic effects of Guelma’s urban wastewater, Algeria

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Abstract

Assessment of water pollution and its effect upon river biotic communities and human health is indispensable to develop control and management strategies. In this study, the mutagenicity and genotoxicity of urban wastewater of the city of Guelma in Algeria were examined between April 2012 and April 2013. For this, two biological tests, namely Amesand chromosomal aberrations (CA) test in Allium cepa root tips were employed on the samples collected from five different sampling stages (S1–S5). In Ames test, two strains of Salmonella typhimurium TA98 and TA100 with or without metabolic activation (S9-mix) were used. All water samples were found to be mutagenic to S. typhimurium TA98 with or without S9-mix. A significant decrease in mitotic index (MI) was observed with a decrease in the percentage of cells in the prophase and an increase in the telophase. Main aberrations observed were anaphase bridges, disturbed anaphase-telophase cells, vagrants and stickiness in anaphase-telophase cells. All treatments of wastewater in April 2012, at S5 in July 2012, at S1 and S5 in November 2012, at S5 in February 2013, and at S1 in April 2013 induced CA when compared to the negative control. Some physicochemical parameters and heavy metals (Cd, Pb, and Cu) were also recorded in the samples examined.

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Acknowledgments

Special thanks due to wastewater treatment plant workers of the city of Guelma and to Gueroui Yacine, for his help in the realization of the map figure.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biology Department, Faculty of Natural and Life Sciences, Earth and Universe Sciences, University 8 Mai 1945 Guelma, BP 401, Guelma, 24000, Algeria

    Mouna Tabet, Ahlem Abda, Djamel E. Benouareth & Messaouda Khallef

  2. Molecular Biology and Genetics Department, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Uşak University, 64300, Uşak, Turkey

    Recep Liman

  3. Molecular Biology and Genetics Department, Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Üsküdar University, Haluk Türksoy Sok, No. 14, Altunizade, 34662, Istanbul, Turkey

    Muhsin Konuk

  4. Biology Department, Faculty of Sciences, University Badji Mokhtar, Annaba, BP 12, Annaba, 23000, Algeria

    Ali Taher

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  1. Mouna Tabet
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  2. Ahlem Abda
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  3. Djamel E. Benouareth
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  4. Recep Liman
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Correspondence to Muhsin Konuk.

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Tabet, M., Abda, A., Benouareth, D.E. et al. Mutagenic and genotoxic effects of Guelma’s urban wastewater, Algeria. Environ Monit Assess 187, 26 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-015-4281-4

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