Micronuclei analysis in mice peripheral blood exposed to polarized polychromatic noncoherent light (Bioptron® Light)

Abstract

The increase in cancer in recent years suggests an inadvertent exposure to agents that cause genetic damage. The polarized polychromatic noncoherent light Bioptron® lamp is used to accelerate healing, among other therapeutic applications and its potential carcinogenic effects as a mitogenic agent have not been explored. The objective was to evaluate the genotoxicity of the Bioptron light therapy by means of the micronucleus assay in mouse erythrocytes. Male SKH1 hairless mice were randomly divided into six groups (5 mice/group); Group 1: negative control received ambient light; Group 2: positive control was exposed to ultraviolet light lamp A (UV-A) for 80 min; Experimental Groups 3–6 were exposed to the Bioptron lamp light for 10, 20, 40 and 80 min, respectively. Exposures in all groups were once a day for 4 days and blood smears were performed daily for 5 days and subsequently read with a microscope equipped with epifluorescence. The values of micronucleated erythrocytes (MNE), micronucleated polychromatic erythrocytes (MNPCE) and the proportion of polychromatic erythrocytes (PCE) were determined. The study group that received the UV-A light was the only one that increased MNE and MNPCE values, while in the groups exposed to the Bioptron lamp and the negative control did not show increases in any of the sampling days. In conclusion, under the conditions presented here, our results suggest that the light of the Bioptron lamp does not cause damage to the genetic material of SKH1 mice, by means of the micronucleus test in peripheral blood.