Evaluation of Common, Acrylic Chemical Bonding Agents as Phytotoxins of Gametophyte Development in the Fern, Ceratopteris richardii

Abstract:

Chemical toxicity is one of perspective, driven by the eye of the beholder.  What counts as toxic to a particular biological species may be entirely non-toxic to another.  For instance, acrylic bonding agents (ABs) are commonly used in numerous industrial applications and are typically comprised of a composite ratio of dichloromethane, methyl methacrylate, methylene chloride, and trichloroethylene.  In liquid form, ABs have been shown to be exceptionally teratogenic and carcinogenic in many different animal studies, including in humans.  ABs however have not been fully investigated in plants.  A contrasting example is that of silicone, routinely used in clinical settings as bonding agents for medical devices.  Silicone exhibits no known toxicity profile in humans and is chemically composed of hexamethyldisilane and trimethoxymethylsilane.  Like ABs, silicone toxicity in plant organisms has also not been fully investigated.  All plants execute a lifecycle of alternating generations.  However, ferns are unique in that they possess free-living gametophyte and sporophyte stages.  Fern gametophytes often resemble non-vascular plants such as mosses.  But as a fern sporophyte, the organism begins to resemble angiosperms in many respects.  Because of this, ferns allow us to not only test whether certain chemicals are phytotoxic, but also if these chemicals are specifically toxic against gametophytes and/or sporophytes.  Here we show data that evaluate the plant toxicity of ABs and silicone on developing gametophytes in the model fern organism, Ceratopteris richardii.  Future work will examine toxicity of these substances on fern sporophytes.