G. Koppen et L. Verschaeve, THE ALKALINE COMET TEST ON PLANT-CELLS - A NEW GENOTOXICITY TEST FOR DNA STRAND BREAKS IN VICIA-FABA ROOT-CELLS, Mutation research. Section on environmental mutagenesis and related subjects, 360(3), 1996, pp. 193-200
The alkaline comet assay (single cell gel electrophoresis assay) is a
sensitive method for the detection of DNA damage. This paper describes
the first application of this assay to plant cells for genotoxicologi
cal assessment. Germinating Vicia faba (field bean) seedlings were kep
t in water with either methyl methanesulfonate (MMS), ethyl methanesul
fonate (EMS), mitomycin C (MMC), cycloheximide (CH), cadmium chloride
(CdCl2), potassium dichromate (K2Cr2O7), or chromium trichloride (CrCl
3). Nuclei were isolated from the root cells and evaluated for the ext
ent of DNA migration. With the exception of cycloheximide, all agents
induced a significant increase in DNA migration. These results indicat
e that the comet assay may be a valuable tool for monitoring DNA damag
e in plant systems. However, there was a significant heterogeneity in
the extent of DNA migration within and between seedlings, which may be
intrinsic to the assay or indicative of sampling problems.