The application of bioassays in risk assessment of environmental pollution

Increased contamination of the environment by toxic chemicals has resulted in the need for sensitive assays to be used in risk assessment of polluted sites. Traditional tests are useful to detect and measure concentrations of chemicals in the environment and in tissues. However, physicochemical assays possess deficiencies that impair their use in evaluating complex environmental contamination. We have developed cytogenetic procedures, including chromosomal, micronucleus, and flow cytometric assays, to assess the mutagenic damage of petrochemicals and low-level radioactivity on indigenous terrestrial and aquatic wildlife populations. These procedures are sensitive to the perturbation of DNA that results from exposure to mutagenic contaminants in both field and laboratory studies. The use of natural populations of animals in biomonitoring, combined with traditional chemical assays, will ultimately provide sufficient information to estimate the risk to human health and environmental quality from anthropogenic pollution.