Genotoxicity/mutagenicity of formaldehyde revealed by the Arabidopsis thaliana plants transgenic for homologous recombination substrates.
Formaldehyde (FA) is a major industrial chemical and has been extensively used in the manufacture of synthetic resins and chemicals. The use of FA-containing industrial materials in daily life exposes human to FA extensively. Numerous studies indicate that FA is genotoxic, and can induce various genotoxic effects in vitro and in vivo. The primary DNA lesions induced by FA are DNA-protein crosslinks (DPCs). Recently, it has been reported that the homologous recombination (HR) mechanism is involved in the repair of DPCs, suggesting the homologous recombination could be a potential indicator for the genotoxicity/mutagenicity of FA. However, it has not yet been reported that organisms harboring recombination substrates are used for the detection of genotoxic/mutagenic effects of FA. In this present study, an Arabidopsis thaliana-line transgenic for GUS recombination substrates was used to study the genotoxicity/mutagenicity of FA, and the results showed that FA-exposure significantly increased the induction of HR in growing plants, but not in dormant seeds. We also observed an early up-regulation of expression of HR-related gene, AtRAD54, after FA-exposure. Moreover, the pretreatment with glutathione (GSH) suppressed drastically the induction of HR by FA-exposure.
Li
Fanghua
F
Key Laboratory of Ion Beam Bio-engineering, Institute of Plasma Physics of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031, PR China.
Liu
Ping
P
Wang
Ting
T
Bian
Po
P
Wu
Yuejin
Y
Wu
Lijun
L
Yu
Zengliang
Z
D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000633:toxicity; D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000235:genetics*; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D004249:DNA Damage; D004265:DNA Helicases; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D005557:Formaldehyde / Q000633:toxicity*; D005978:Glutathione / Q000494:pharmacology; D009152:Mutagenicity Tests / Q000379:methods*; D009153:Mutagens / Q000633:toxicity*; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified; D011995:Recombination, Genetic; D012639:Seeds / Q000187:drug effects; D015854:Up-Regulation
D000393:Air Pollutants; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D009153:Mutagens; C518800:RAD54 protein, Arabidopsis; D005557:Formaldehyde; D004265:DNA Helicases; D005978:Glutathione