title: Cytogenetic effects of combined radioactive (137Cs) and chemical (Cd, Pb, and 2,4-D herbicide) contamination on spring barley intercalar meristem cells.
abstract: The frequency of cytogenetic effects in spring barley intercalar meristem cells was studied in the presence of a range of different stressors. There was a non-linear dependence on the concentrations of 137Cs, Cd, Pb, and dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) herbicide contamination in the exposure ranges used. The frequency of cytogenetic effects increased at the lower concentrations of the pollutants more rapidly than at the higher concentrations. Contamination of the soil by lead at a concentration that meets the current standards for permissible content in soil, and by 2,4-D herbicide at the application levels recommended for agricultural use resulted in a significant increase in aberrant cell frequency. In these cases, the extent of the observed cytogenetic effects was comparable with the effect induced by a 137Cs soil contamination of 49.2 kBq/kg, a level that exceeds by 10-fold the maximum level permitted in radionuclide-contaminated areas where people are resident. In most cases, the experimentally observed combined effects of the pollutants studied differed from those expected from an additive hypothesis. When combined with 137Cs contamination, antagonistic effects became increasingly stronger when the second stressor was changed from cadmium to lead, and then to the herbicide, as measured both by tests of the 'frequency of aberrant cells' and the 'aberrations per cell'. Data from this study and previous reported literature suggest that synergistic increases in cytogenetic effects can be induced by the simultaneous influence of several stressors even at low intensities. This indicates that there is a capability for mutual intensification of the effects of environmental factors that actually occur in situations of low-level exposure.
authors.affiliation: Russian Institute of Agricultural Radiology and Agroecology, Kievskoe Shosse, 109 km, 249030 Obninsk, Kaluga Region, Russia. stgeraskin@gmail.com
authors.forename: Stanislav A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Geras'kin
authors.forename: Jin Kyu
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Vladimir G
authors.initials: VG
authors.lastname: Dikarev
authors.forename: Alla A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Oudalova
authors.forename: Nina S
authors.initials: NS
authors.lastname: Dikareva
authors.forename: Yevgeniy V
authors.initials: YV
authors.lastname: Spirin
mesh_terms: D015084:2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic Acid / Q000633:toxicity*; D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes / Q000633:toxicity*; D002869:Chromosome Aberrations / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000528:radiation effects*; D020732:Cytogenetic Analysis; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004307:Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; D001467:Hordeum; D018519:Meristem / Q000235:genetics*; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000633:toxicity*; D012987:Soil / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes; D019216:Metals, Heavy; D012987:Soil; D015084:2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic Acid