From Mealworm to Darkling Beetle: Does UV-C Radiation Have a Mutagenic Effect?

Overview

Objectives/Goals To determine whether beetles of mealworms irradiated with UV-C rays will have a higher percentage of mutated beetles than that of non-irradiated mealworms. Methods/Materials Six hundred large-sized healthy mealworms were divided equally into six groups, three controls and three tests. Groups were kept in boxes with mesh lids. Once per day, the food, consisting of bran and oats, was sifted out of each box through the lid and the number of dead was recorded. Each test group was then irradiated using a UV-C sanitizing wand for three minutes. All radiation terminated when the first worm pupated. As beetles hatched, a checklist of major characteristics of Darkling Beetles was used to determine whether the beetle was mutated. Results The aggregate mutation rate for the control groups was 23.077% while for the test groups it was 35.714%. One surprising observation was that the test groups had a higher hatching rate than the control groups. Conclusions/Discussion There was a definitive increase in mutation on the beetles of UV-C irradiated mealworms. Although the 54.761% greater mutation rate for the test groups was less than the 75% predicted rate, the hypothesis was largely correct. The unexpected higher hatching rate in the test groups, however, might be a result of the #sanitized# condition created by UV-C radiation.

Awards (1)

• Fourth Place

Competition history

• CSEF 2013 Pharmacology/ Toxicology · Entry J1728

Resources

• CSEF project summary ↗

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