B. Talukdar

Evaluation of genetic toxicity caused by acid mine drainage of coal mines on fish fauna of Simsang River, Garohills, Meghalaya, India

Fishery ecology of the Simsang River, Meghalaya is being threatened by large scale environmental degradation due to acid mine drainage (AMD) of coal mines. In the present paper, effort has been made to evaluate the genotoxicity caused due to AMD of coal mines on Channa punctata under laboratory condition through comet assay, micronucleus and chromosome aberration tests. Water samples were collected seasonally from affected and unaffected sites of the River and physico-chemical quality of water indicated low pH (4.6), high concentration of sulphates (270mgL(-1)) and iron (7.2mgL(-1)) beyond permissible limits. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) showed highest concentration of 4-ring PAH and Benzo[a]anthracene was the most important pollutant in the water collected from affected sites. The highest and the lowest mean concentrations of PAHs were estimated in monsoon and winter season, respectively. The index of DNA damage assessed by comet assay, micronucleus and chromosome aberration tests demonstrated significant differences season wise in different sampling sites. Frequency of DNA-damaged cells was found highest in the water samples collected from affected site in monsoon season.

Cytotoxic and genotoxic affects of acid mine drainage on fish Channa punctata (Bloch)

The investigation deals with the effects of Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) of coal mine on fish Channa punctata (Bloch) by examining the incidence of haematological, morphological, histological changes and DNA fragmentation in tissues of C. punctata in laboratory condition. For this study fishes were exposed to 10% of AMD for a period of 30 days. The fusion of the primary and secondary gill lamellae, distortion, loss of alignment, deposition of worn out tissues and mucous on the surface of the lamella in the gills; degeneration of morphological architecture, loss of alignment of tubules, mucous deposition in the kidney; cellular damage, cellular necrosis, extraneous deposition on the surface, pore formation in the liver are some important changes detected by scanning electron microscopy. Fishes of AMD treated group showed gradual significant decrease in TEC, Hb and, increase in TLC and DLC as compared to that of the control. DNA fragmentation observed in kidney of fishes from treated group indicates an intricate pollutant present in the AMD. The high incidence of morphological and histological alterations, haematological changes along with DNA breakage in C. punctata is an evidence of the cytotoxic and genotoxic potential of AMD of coal mines.

Karyology of Puntius sophore (Pisces, Cypriniformes) from theBrahmaputra River, Assam, India

In this investigation karyotypes of Puntius sophore from the Brahmaputra River (Assam, India) are presented. Chromosome preparations were made using anterior parts of the kidney cells. The karyotype of the population under study consisted of 48 diploid chromosomes with fundamental arm number 54. The chromosomal divergences in P. sophore with different ecology and geographical distribution are discussed.

Impact of Coal Mining on Soil Characteristics of Simsang River, Meghalaya, India

This paper deals with the studies on soil quality parameters of Simsang River, Meghalaya affected by acid mine drainage of coal mines from January 2014 to December 2015. It has been observed that the soil quality in mostly affected areas of the River have relatively low pH (4.6 ± 2.91), low nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium) content, organic carbon (0.77 ± 2.86) and which has decreased gradually from coalmine unaffected and affected areas of the river. Certain heavy metals in high concentration (Fe, Zn, Pb, Ni and Mn) were also detected from soil of the River.