RESUMO
Lead is a known toxicant that has been implicated in encephalopathy in children and may affect the gastrointestinal and hematopoietic and other systems in adults. In fact, lead has been shown to compete with calcium for entry into the synaptosome and induce toxic effects. The aim of the current study was to evaluate the cytotoxic and genotoxic effects of lead by using lymphocytes from human peripheral blood in vitro. The LC50 for lead nitrate as determined by Trypan blue dye exclusion technique was found to be 3.14 mM. Chromosomal aberration frequency at sublethal doses (1/10 of LC50) as determined by examining the metaphase chromosomes (karyotyping) did not show significant aberrations except for some aneuploidy and about 2-4% gaps, breaks (3-4%), and about 5% satellite associations. However, significant DNA damage was determined by SCGE (Comet assay). The comet tail length proportionately increased with increasing lead nitrate concentration. Thus, Pb can induce single-strand DNA breaks, possibly by competing with metal binding sites.