Bioresilience to Mercury Chloride of the Brine Shrimp Artemia Salina after Treatment with Homeopathic Mercurius Corrosivus

Abstract

Introduction Finding solutions to mitigate the impact of pollution on living systems is a matter of great interest. Homeopathic preparations of toxic substances have been described in the literature as attenuation factors for intoxication. Herein, an experimental study using Artemia salina and mercury chloride was developed as a model to identify aspects related to bioresilience. Aims The aim of the study was to describe the effects of homeopathic Mercurius corrosivus (MC) on Artemia salina cysts hatching and on mercury bioavailability. Methods Artemia salina cysts were exposed to 5.0 µg/mL of mercury chloride during the hatching phase. MC potencies (6cH, 30cH, and 200cH) were prepared in sterile purified water and poured into artificial sea water. Different controls were used (non-challenged cysts and challenged cysts treated with water, succussed water, and Ethilicum 1cH). Four series of nine experiments were performed to evaluate the percentage of cyst hatching. Soluble total mercury (THg) levels and precipitated mercury content were also evaluated. Solvatochromic dyes were used to check for eventual physicochemical markers of MC biological activity. Results Significant delay (p < 0.0001) in cyst hatching was observed only after treatment with MC 30cH, compared with controls. This result was associated with an increase of THg concentration in water (p = 0.0018) and of chlorine/oxygen ratio (p < 0.0001) in suspended micraggregates, suggesting changes in mercury bioavailability. A specific interaction of MC 30cH with the solvatochromic dye ET33 (p = 0.0017) was found. Conclusion Changes in hatching rate and possible changes in Hg bioavailability are postulated as protective effects of MC 30cH on Artemia salina, by improving its natural bioresilience processes.

Environmental Homeopathy: Homeopathic Potencies Regulate the Toxicity and Growth of Raphidiopsis raciborskii (cyanobacteria) and can be Tracked Physico-Chemically. Part 1: Biological Results

“…25 In Pinto et al, 2021, treating 20,000 cysts exposed to mercury chloride at 10% lethal concentration with the respective isotherapic prolonged the diapause period, protecting the embryos from direct contact with the toxic substance up to its evaporation. 22 Similar studies using high potencies of homeopathic arsenic performed in plants and microorganisms have shown similar effects. [26][27][28] Given that such homeopathic dilutions often exceed the limit of Avogadro's number, it is necessary to consider the possible existence of mechanisms other than purely biochemical ones to explain the observed protective effects described above.…”

“…are deemed to be nonsentient organisms, which significantly facilitates the ethical aspects involving their use in research. 10,21 Recently, we have observed bioresilience processes in a model of Artemia salina cyst hatching by inserting isotherapic potencies of toxic agents into the culture water, [22][23][24] being prepared according to the official homeopathic pharmacopeia. 25 In Pinto et al, 2021, treating 20,000 cysts exposed to mercury chloride at 10% lethal concentration with the respective isotherapic prolonged the diapause period, protecting the embryos from direct contact with the toxic substance up to its evaporation.…”

Immobilization of Solvatochromic Dyes on Transparent Cellulose Films: an Improved Method for the Study of Homeopathic Potencies

“…Sunlight may play a part in potency degradation in the natural world, but the sustained action of Phosphorus 30 in a large lake system 8 subject to sunlight over several days suggests it cannot be the sole agent responsible for potency decay. Indeed, results with a large number of solvatochromic dyes under conditions where light is largely excluded 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 provide ample evidence that potency action slowly decays in the presence of dye, irrespective of the absence of light, indicating that the potency–solvatochromic dye interaction itself eventually causes potency decay.…”

“…Several studies have shown solvatochromic dyes to be consistently useful in investigating the physico-chemical nature of homeopathic potencies. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9] So far, investigations have focused on using free dyes in solution and how the spectra of those dyes change on interacting with a range of remedies of differing potency levels. Whilst a great deal of information has so far been gained using this approach, most solvatochromic dyes in aqueous solution are subject to varying degrees of aggregation, dependent upon dye structure.…”

Effects of Homeopathic Preparations on Raphidiopsis raciborskii (Cyanobacteria) Toxicity in Artemia salina Model

“…Some homeopathic preparations have been identified as remedial action on toxicity models in Artemia salina. This study aimed to observe whether homeopathic products influence the toxicity of R. raciborskii extract on A. salina by inducing cyst hatching arrest, an embryo bioresilience model previously developed in our laboratory (Pinto et al, 2021; Mohammad et al, 2022). Thus, previous toxicity tests were carried out on cysts in 96-well plates, using different concentrations of the extract obtained from regular cultivation of R. raciborskii in HCl 0.05M, whose strain, named T3, is kept in the laboratory of Cyanobacteria at FURGS, Brazil.…”