Genotoxicity biomonitoring in Tupinambis merianae (Teiidae: Squamata)

LAURA G. SCHAUMBURG; GISELA L. POLETTA; PABLO A. SIROSKI; MARTA D. MUDRY

Asunción

Otro; XVIII Alexander Hollaender International Course; 2013

SPAMCTA y ALAMCTA

Biomarkers have been suggested as a practical tool for assessing and monitoring of health ecosystem. In recent years, toxicological research in different species of lizards has increased, proposing some of them as biological models for environmental monitoring. The Micronucleus Test (MN) and Comet Assay (CA) are highly sensitive biomarkers to characterize genetic damage induced by xenobiotics. The lack of information about genotoxicity studies in the tegu lizard Tupinambis merianae together with environmental degradation as a result of the pesticide use increase in genetically modified crops led us to begin a monitoring study in this species. Initially, proper conditions for the application of the CA and MN test in peripheral blood erythrocytes of tegu lizard were established. Then, baseline DNA damage was determine through both biomarkers in animals coming from different nests of origin, of different age and both sexes. In third instance, embryotoxicity and genotoxicity effects induced by different concentrations of the commercial formulation Roundup® (RU) after in ovo exposure were evaluated. Results of these studies determined the usefulness of the tegu lizard as a sentinel species for genotoxicity monitoring through the application of the CA and MN test as sensitive biomarkers. Then, we demonstrated DNA damage induced by RU under controlled conditions of exposure (p