Investigation of possible genotoxic effects of oxadiazone and pendimethaline herbicides by comet and micronucleus test systems

In this study, possible genotoxic effects of Oxadiazon (OD) and Pendimethalin (PM) herbicides on Eisenia hortensis (E. hortensis) species from herbicides which are used in agricultural fields to increase quality, to eliminate unwanted organisms and to affect non-target organisms, comet and micronucleus (MN) test methods. In the study conducted with E. hortensis coelomocytes, the LD₅₀ values of OD herbicides were found to be 0, 255 ppm and the LD₅₀ values of PM herbicide were found to be 0, 243 ppm by Probit analysis method. In the study, concentrations of 0.5xLD₅₀, LD₅₀ and 2xLD₅₀ of OD and PM herbicides were applied to E. hortensis for 48 hours. Distilled water (dH2O) was used as a negative control group. As a result of the comet test, the increase in the degree of DNA damage was found to be significant (p <0, 05) for the OD and PM herbicides compared with the control group and for the doses LD50 and 2xLD50. At the same time MN formation was also observed to increase due to concentration increase. In PM herbicide, the formation of the binuclear cells has increased significantly due to the increase in concentration. Increase in DNA damage was found statistically important in E. hortensis coelomocytes at by Comet and MN Test method of OD and PM herbicides (p <0,05). In agricultural areas, worms are very important organisms in determining soil quality and in terms of ecological balance. For this reason, considering the worms will be adversely affected by the chemicals applied to the soil unconsciously, attention should be paid to the chemical use and the dose amount to be applied.