Use of plant cell cultures to study the metabolism of environmental chemicals.

The metabolism of the following environmental chemicals has been studied in cell suspension cultures of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and soybean (Glycine max L.):2, 4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D), 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4,5-T), hexachlorobenzene, pentachlorophenol, diethylhexylphthalate , benzo [alpha] pyrene, and DDT. All chemicals tested, including the persistent ones, were partially metabolized. Polar conjugates predominated in all cases. A covalent incorporation into lignin could be demonstrated for 2,4-D and pentachlorophenol. A specific deposition in the cellular vacuole could be demonstrated for the beta-D-glucopyranoside conjugates derived from 2,4-D. A rapid assay procedure to evaluate the metabolism of a given 14C-labeled chemical in plant cell suspension cultures is described. This procedure requires about 1 week, and the reproducibility of the results obtained has been assessed.