Autor: |
Mojica-Vázquez LH; Genotoxicología Ambiental, Departamento de Ciencias Ambientales, Centro de Ciencias de la Atmósfera, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Circuito Exterior s/n, Ciudad Universitaria Coyoacán, 04510, Mexico, Mexico. oyallonjustine@yahoo.com., Madrigal-Zarraga D; Genotoxicología Ambiental, Departamento de Ciencias Ambientales, Centro de Ciencias de la Atmósfera, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Circuito Exterior s/n, Ciudad Universitaria Coyoacán, 04510, Mexico, Mexico., García-Martínez R; Genotoxicología Ambiental, Departamento de Ciencias Ambientales, Centro de Ciencias de la Atmósfera, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Circuito Exterior s/n, Ciudad Universitaria Coyoacán, 04510, Mexico, Mexico., Boube M; Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI)-CBD, UMR5547 CNRS/Université Toulouse III, Toulouse, France., Calderón-Segura ME; Genotoxicología Ambiental, Departamento de Ciencias Ambientales, Centro de Ciencias de la Atmósfera, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Circuito Exterior s/n, Ciudad Universitaria Coyoacán, 04510, Mexico, Mexico., Oyallon J; Genotoxicología Ambiental, Departamento de Ciencias Ambientales, Centro de Ciencias de la Atmósfera, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Circuito Exterior s/n, Ciudad Universitaria Coyoacán, 04510, Mexico, Mexico. oyallonjustine@yahoo.com. |
Abstrakt: |
Mercury exposure has been shown to affect the reproductive system in many organisms, although the molecular mechanisms are still elusive. In the present study, we exposed Drosophila melanogaster Canton-S adult females to concentrations of 0 mM, 0.1 mM, 0.3 mM, 3 mM, and 30 mM of mercury chloride (HgCl 2 ) for 24 h, 48 h, or 72 h to determine how mercury could affect fertility. Alkaline assays performed on dissected ovaries showed that mercury induced DNA damage that is not only dose-dependent but also time-dependent. All ovaries treated for 72 h have incorporated mercury and exhibit size reduction. Females treated with 30 mM HgCl 2 , the highest dose, had atrophied ovaries and exhibited a drastic 7-fold reduction in egg laying. Confocal microscopy analysis revealed that exposure to HgCl 2 disrupts germinal and somatic cell organization in the germarium and leads to the aberrant expression of a germline-specific gene in somatic follicle cells in developing egg chambers. Together, these results highlight the potential long-term impact of mercury on germline and ovarian cells that might involve gene deregulation. |