Evaluation of Dna Damage Induced by Lead Acetate in Human Lymphocytes, Using Comet Assay

Lead (Pb) is present in the natural and occupational environment and it is one of the most clinically important heavy metals, because it induces a broad range of physiological, biochemical and genetical dys- functions. Its exposure leads to an increased frequency of genetic aberrations in human beings. Hence, this investigation was conducted to assess the genotoxic effect of lead at three dosage levels. In the present study, the DNA damage was detected by adopting the alkaline single cell gel electrophoresis assay (Comet Assay) in peripheral blood lymphocyte cultures. The result of this study revealed an increased level of DNA damage among treated groups. A significant increase in the tail length of comets and other indices was observed at 25 µg/ml and 50 µg/ml concentrations comparatively. Thus lead acetate induced single- strand breaks (SSB) and double strand breaks (DSB) in DNA, alkali-labile sites (ALS), oxidative DNA damage as well as DNA-DNA / DNA-protein / DNA-metal cross linking as evidenced by the comet assay.