Author(s): DAL BOSCO, D.; SINSKI, I.; RITSCHEL, P. S.; QUECINI, V.

Summary: Plant development and gene transfer studies frequently require the induction of quiescent somatic cells to recuperate embryogenic potential via application of synthetic auxin analogs. The severe effects of hormone analogs on plant growth and development have prompted their use as herbicides in agriculture, where they were demonstrated to be deleterious contaminants to soil and water, also associated to increased frequencies of certain human tumors. In order to investigate the effects of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) contamination in plant tissue-culture laboratories, the development of three plant species was investigated on glassware free of hormone residues and plates containing synthetic auxin residue. Residual 2,4-D severely impaired seed germination, seedling establishment and aerial and root development of the tested plant species, namely; Arabidopsis thaliana, Petunia x hybrida and Solanum lycopersicum. A simple and feasible decontamination protocol for laboratory plastic and glassware was developed, based on international recommendations for handling chlorophenoxy herbicide residues. The effectiveness of the decontamination procedure was assayed by in vivo analyses of plant growth and development on hormone-free media contained in contaminated, decontaminated and new glassware. Plant development parameters evaluated on decontaminated glassware were indistinguishable from those observed in plants grown on new plates, indicating that hormone contamination was significantly reduced to levels unable to affect the plants for the three species investigated.

Publication year: 2010

Types of publication: Journal article

Unit: Embrapa Grape & Wine

Keywords: Auxina, Biologia, Contaminação, Cultura de tecidos, Embriogênese somática, Genética, Herbicida, Propagação vegetativa