Genotoxic and mutagenic evaluation in Eisenia foetida annelids exposed to iron ore tailings from the region of Brumadinho, MG, Brazil

Abstract

Soils that have a disproportion of metallic elements due to anthropic activities endanger the terrestrial fauna. This study evaluated whether earthworms (Eisenia foetida) exposed to ore tailings from Brumadinho region presented a higher frequency of genotoxic and mutagenic damages than annelids from a reference area (control). The animals were exposed to substrates containing 0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100% iron mining waste. The results indicated increased DNA damage (p < 0.05), detected by the comet assay at 25% and 50%. There was a three-fold increase in micronuclei in animals on the substrates with the highest concentrations (75% and 100%) [F = 3.095; p = 0.02]. The earthworms lost weight as the percentage of mining waste increased. We concluded that E. foetida presented DNA damage in the contaminated soils of Brumadinho. However, more research is fundamental, once the environmental disaster in Brumadinho was one of the biggest mining catastrophe in Brazil.

Keywords: DNA damage; Earthworms; Heavy metals; Micronucleus; Mining.