Pollutants have adverse effects on human health and on other organisms that inhabit
or use water resources. The aim of the present study was to assess the environmental
quality of three watercourses in Monte Carmelo, MG, Brazil, using the micronucleus
test on Tradescantia. For each treatment, 15 plants were exposed to
water samples for 24 h. The control group was exposed to formaldehyde (0.2%) and the
negative control to Hoagland solution. Subsequently the plants were placed in
Hoagland solution for 24 h to recover. Cells were stained with 2% acetic carmine and
examined by light microscopy. Three hundred tetrads were analyzed per slide. The
frequency of genotoxic alterations was expressed as the number of micronuclei per 100
tetrads, and the groups were compared by ANOVA. At all sample sites for each
watercourse significant genotoxicity indices were observed. The results suggest that
in the Mumbuca creek, the current situation of effluent discharge should be
reconsidered by the municipal environmental authorities. The increase in micronucleus
frequency denoted for water samples of the Mumbuca creek, Lambari river and Perdizes
river emphasizes the need to adopt environmental vigilance strategies, such as
biological monitoring.
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