| This study aimed to evaluate the toxicity of Ponceau 4R food dye on the cell cycle in root meristematic cells of Allium cepa L. at three concentrations: 0.25, 0.50 and 0.75 g L-1, at exposure times of 24 and 48 hours. For each concentration, we used a set of five onion bulbs that were first rooted in distilled water and then transferred to their respective concentrations. Radicles were collected and fixed in acetic acid (3:1) for 24 hours. The slides were mounted with the crushing technique and stained with 2% acetic orcein. Cells were analyzed throughout the cell cycle, totaling 5,000 cells for each control and exposure time. The calculated mitotic indices were subjected to the Chi-square test (p < 0.05). From the results, we observed that the... |
