Genetoxicity of Heavy Metals-II Zinc

Abstract

The toxicity of zinc to genetic material of lymphocyte culture was reported in this article. It acted as clastogen and mitotic poison. In clastogenic effect, both chromatid gaps and breaks were noted with a high incidence at 0.03 mg/ml dosage. The mitotic poison effect, indicated by the reduction in nuclear division, was first detected also at 0.03 mg/ml and was extremely exhibited with the increment of zinc. Zinc should, therefore, be declared a dangerous element from which genetoxic effects could not be estimated provided that tests are conducted in other systems as well.