Effect of pretreatment with venom of Apis mellifera bees on the yield of gamma-ray induced chromosome aberrations in human blood lymphocytes

Venom of the honey bee Apis mellifera induced a protective effect against the induction of dicentric chromosomes by gamma radiation (2.0 Gy) in human peripheral blood lymphocytes when the cultures were treated with 0.00015 μl venom/1 ml medium 6 h before irradiation. In cultures to which the venom was added immediately before irradiation with 0.25, 1.0 and 2.0 Gy, no significant differences in number of dicentric chromosomes induced was observed when compared to cultures submitted to irradiation only. The venom did not induce clastogenic effects nor did it increase the frequency of sister chromatid exchanges. (author)