ABSTRACT
Several parasites have been shown to induce genotoxicity in humans and fish are important intermediate hosts for completing the life cycle of many parasites, posing a huge economic loss worldwide through the ecosystem food chain. In the present study, we assessed the genotoxic potential of helminth Rostellascaris sp. through a benchmark of comet assay and micronucleus (MNi) tests on the hepatocytes, muscle, and whole blood of infected fish Bagarius bagarius (Hamilton) collected from different sites of the river Ganges. The percentage of the mean tail length of the comet was 10.28±0.36 in the reticulocytes of the infected fish which was significantly (P ?0.05) longer compared to the control (2.86±0.12). Similarly, a significantly (P ?0.05) higher DNA damage was observed in hepatocytes of parasite-infected fish (12.15±0.24) when compared to the control (3.024±0.013). A comparatively higher DNA damage was observed in the hepatocytes than the reticulocytes, indicative of tissue-specific DNA damage as hepatocytes are the biomarkers of metabolic functions prone toward biotic stress. A higher induction of MN was observed in infested fish (0.18±0.07) as compared to the control. Our results suggest that parasites contribute to the induction of cellular and DNA damage in fish during the progression of the host-parasite interaction.
ABSTRACT
Background & Objective: Chlorhexidine mouth rinses are utilized worldwide on regular basis in oral hygiene practice for plaque control. Studies have shown that chlorhexidine has toxic effects on a variety of eukaryotic cells. Micronuclei count in exfoliative cells is an economical and non invasive diagnostic method for evaluation of cytotoxic effects of many carcinogens/ co-carcinogens. The present study was conducted in order to evaluate frequency of micronuclei in buccal epithelial cells of patients using chlorhexidine containing mouthrinses. Methodology: Study included 50 subjects, of whom 30 having clinically suspected mild gingivitis, rinsed with chlorhexidine; 20 control subjects, rinsed with saline. Buccal epithelial cells were collected with a brush before and after one week of usage of chlorhexidine by patients and physiologic saline by controls. Cells subjected to Fuelgen reaction and analysed by two independent observers for micronuclei counts. Results: Considerable increase in micronuclei count was noted in patients using chlorhexidine compared to controls. Conclusion: Present study suggests that chlorhexidine has cytotoxic effects and further studies involving the therapeutic use of different mouthrinses for a longer duration may provide justification for their usage in clinical practice.