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Carbaryl-A selective genotoxicant

I S Grover1, S S Ladhar, S K Randhawa

  • 1School of Life Sciences, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar-143005, India.

Environmental Pollution (Barking, Essex : 1987)
|January 1, 1989
PubMed

Insights

Carbaryl, an insecticide, did not show mutagenic effects in Salmonella typhimurium strains. However, it induced chromosomal aberrations in Allium cepa root cells, indicating potential genotoxicity in plants.

Area of Science:

  • Environmental toxicology
  • Plant science
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Carbaryl is a widely used insecticide with known toxicological properties.
  • Assessing the mutagenic potential of pesticides is crucial for environmental and health safety.
  • Investigating genotoxicity across different biological systems is essential for comprehensive risk assessment.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the mutagenic effects of carbaryl using bacterial assays.
  • To assess the in vivo chromosomal aberration potential of carbaryl in plant root meristems.
  • To compare the genotoxic responses of bacterial and plant systems to carbaryl.

Main Methods:

  • Histidine reversion assay in Salmonella typhimurium strains (TA98, TA1535, TA102) with and without S9 mix.
  • In vivo chromosomal aberration analysis in Allium cepa root meristems.
  • Recovery experiments involving transfer of treated Allium cepa bulbs to distilled water.

Main Results:

  • Carbaryl did not significantly increase histidine revertant frequency in any Salmonella typhimurium strain.
  • Carbaryl induced various chromosomal aberrations in Allium cepa, including c-mitosis, stickiness, breaks, and bridges.
  • Recovery was observed in the mitotic index and a reduction in chromosomal aberration frequency after transferring treated bulbs.

Conclusions:

  • Carbaryl exhibits genotoxic effects in plant systems (Allium cepa) by inducing chromosomal aberrations.
  • Carbaryl does not appear to be mutagenic in the tested bacterial strains (Salmonella typhimurium).
  • Differences in metabolic activation between bacterial and plant systems may explain the contrasting results.

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