Radiation biology. Radioecology
ISSN: 0869-8031

Archives → 2019 → Vol. 59, No. 3 → pp. 293-299

Article

The Effect of γ-Rays on the Development of Plants from Irradiated Seeds and Seedlings of Allium cepa L

Trofimova E.A., Dementyev D.V., Bolsunovsky A. Ya.

Institute of Biophysics SB RAS, Federal Research Center “Krasnoyarsk Science Center Siberian Branch of Russian Academie of Sciences”, Krasnoyarsk, Russia

Abstract

Responses of onion (Allium cepa L.) seeds and seedlings to γ-radiation exposure at the absorbed doses of 0.1–10 Gy have been studied by measuring such parameters as the length of the roots and seedlings and fresh and dry biomass. In the experiments, exposure to γ-radiation at all tested doses, including low doses, led to inhibition of plant growth parameters six days after exposure. The growth parameter most sensitive to γ-radiation was the root length, which decreased by a factor of almost three versus control as the absorbed dose was increased. The damage done to the seedlings and seeds exposed to the doses of between 0.1 and 2.5 Gy was not critical, and a normal growth resumed 10 days after exposure was stopped. At the absorbed doses of between 2 and 2.5 Gy, γ-radiation was found to have a stimulating effect on the plant growth.

Keywords

allium test, onion seeds, seedlings, roots, γ-radiation, low doses, dose dependencies