Abstract
THE teratogenic effects of thalidomide (TH), α-N-phthal-imidoglutarimide, are well recognized and have been recorded for a number of animals2. The critical period has been found to correspond to the time of morphogenesis2,3. These drastic effects in animals raised the question of possible effects on plants. Some positive evidence for effects on lower plants was indicated by the work of Boney1, who noted that high concentrations of TH not only inhibited growth but also induced abnormalities in sporelings of a marine red alga, Callithamnion tetricum Ag. Giacomello et al.4 tested the activity of high concentrations of TH in embryonic vegetal tissues of the common onion, Allium cepa L., and reported alterations in cell mitosis as well as the occurrence of chromosomal aberrations.
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References
Boney, A. D., Nature, 198, 1068 (1963).
Boylen, J. B., Horner, H. H., and Johnson, W. J., Canad. J. Biochem., 42, 35 (1964).
Fabro, S., Schumacher, H., Smith, R. L., and Williams, R. T., Nature, 201, 1125 (1964).
Giacomello, G., Malatesta, P., and Quaglio, G., Nature, 201, 940 (1964).
Moevus, F., and Schrader, E., Ber. deutsch. Botan. Ges., 64, 124 (1951).
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PARUPS, E., HOFFMAN, I. Absence of Growth Effects of Thalidomide on Higher Plants. Nature 205, 1241–1242 (1965). https://doi.org/10.1038/2051241a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/2051241a0
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