Genotoxicity evaluation of surface waters located in urban area of Xi’an City using Vicia faba bioassays

In this study, micronucleus (MCN) and chromosome aberration (CA) tests in Vicia faba root tip cells were carried out in order to assess the water quality and the comprehensive genotoxic potential of surface waters located in the urban area of Xi’an City, China. For these evaluations, water samples from different surface waters (four rivers, two lakes, two biological treatment plant effluents) were collected, the ultra-pure water and methyl methanesulfonate solution was used as the negative and positive control, respectively. In our results, highly significant differences in MCN permillage (average number of micronuclei per 1000 cells), CA frequencies and PI (pollution index) values were found among three rivers and two WWTP effluents, the tested samples from two rivers caused the decrease of mitotic index over 22% compared with the negative control. No significant changes were observed in micronuclei and chromosome aberrations frequencies at one river and two lakes during the period of test (wet season). These results point out a poor state of the water quality and genotoxic activity of the main surface waters in Xi’an City. It is recommended to establish a monitoring program for the presence of genotoxic agents in these surface waters.