Plant Cell Responses to Naphthenic Acids and Acid Extractable Organics Derived from Oil Sands Tailings Pond Water

Date
2017
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Abstract
Mining of bitumen from the oil sands located in Alberta, Canada results in the production of oil sands process-affected water (OSPW). Naphthenic acids (NAs) are a constituent of the acid extractable organic (AEO) fraction isolated from OSPW. Detrimental phenotypic responses are apparent in plants exposed to NAs and AEO fraction. The aim of this thesis is to characterize the responses of plant cell structures after treatment with NAs and AEO fraction. Disruption to microtubules, actin filaments, mitochondria, peroxisomes, Golgi bodies, ER, and cell membranes was observed in onion epidermal cells and Arabidopsis thaliana root epidermal cells. Increasing reactive oxygen levels induced by NA and AEO exposure, and decreased cell viability after AEO exposure was also observed. This research represents the initial characterization of organelle and cytoskeletal responses after NA and AEO exposure in eukaryotic cells, and highlights the potential of cytoskeleton and organelle markers as a biosensor for OSPW toxicity.
Description
Keywords
Botany, Biology--Cell, Plant Physiology
Citation
Alberts, M. (2017). Plant Cell Responses to Naphthenic Acids and Acid Extractable Organics Derived from Oil Sands Tailings Pond Water (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/27365