Study on evaluation of effects of electromagnetic radiation on pollen viability in some commonly occurring plant...

Exposure to electromagnetic radiation (EMR) at varied power densities can profoundly affect fertilization in plants by posing physiological stress and impairing pollen's ability to fertilize. In the present study, four sites (under exposure to EMR at varied power densities) like S-1 (1 μW/cm²), S-2 (2.8 μW/cm²), S-3 (5.5 μW/cm²), and S-4 (15 μW/cm²) were selected for collection of pollen grain samples of 12 plant species naming Alcea rosea L., Centaurea cyanus L., Chrysanthemum coronarium L., Dahlia pinnata Cav., Gaillardia pulchella Foug., Jatropha integerrima Jacq., Papaver somniferum L., Rosa indica L., Tagetes erecta L., Tropaeolum majus L., Verbena pulchella Greene, and Catharanthus roseus L. pollen grain samples were collected from each site ensuring that availability of all selected plants occurred at all sites. Different staining methods, using aceto-orcein (AO), Alexander's (AS), 2,3,5 triphenyl tetrazolium chloride (TTC), and Lugol's (LS) stains, were followed to evaluate pollen viability. The study revealed that among all plant species, C. coronarium showed the minimum pollen viability with AO and TTC stains at S-1, S-2, and S-3 while T. erecta with AO and C. cyanus with TTC at S-4. P. somniferum showed minimum pollen viability with AS at all sites and with LS at S-3 and S-4 while R. indica and V. pulchella with LS at S-1 and 2, respectively. All plant species have shown maximum pollen viability using AO stain at all sites. TTC was found to be the effective staining method that resulted in minimum pollen viability for all plant species at all sites except for Alcea rosea at S-2 and 3 and P. somniferum at S-2 which showed minimum pollen viability with LS and AS, respectively. The association between increased EMR power density and reduced pollen viability across different sites points towards the harmful effects of EMR on plant reproduction.