2026-11-092026-11-09https://scholars.csmu.edu.tw/handle/123456789/38043Humic substances are the most abundant natural compound and ubiquitous in the water, soil, coal, and other sources. It is a heterogeneous high-molecular-weight organic compound, and its composition varies in different geographic regions. The research results of humic acid from a worldwide are contradictory. The toxicity and mutagenicity of humic acids still remain uncertain. Humic acid (HA) has been considered to be harmless, but HA from Blackfoot disease areas in Taiwan was found to exhibit a prominent effect of mutation. The difference may be a reflection of the difference in structure of the HA owing to different hydrogeological conditions, and may also be related to the difference in their biological effects. Nowadays, it is still unclear that which of the compounds present in humic acid was responsible for the toxic effects observed. The mutagenic potencies of environmental mixtures are often monitored by the use of the Ames test. Recently, the use of bacterial bioluminescence assays such as Microtox and Mutatox has become an attractive alternative to traditional methods for toxicological assessment of environmental mixtures. Due to its ease of operation, low cost, and sensitivity, these two bioassays has often been used as tools for preliminary toxicity screening. The aim of this study is to develop the bacterial bioluminescence assays as a screening biological method for detecting the mutagenicity and toxicity of HA in Taiwan. In order to determine the contribution of components responsible for the mutagenicity and toxicity, the crude extracts of HA will be further fractionated. Meanwhile, people often coexposure to HA and other toxicants, such as the pesticides in the crops and arsenic in the well water. Therefore, the toxic interaction between these compounds and HA will also be investigated in the near future.腐植物質(humic substances)廣泛地存在於自然界的土壤、泥碳及各種水 源中，是世界上含量最多的天然化合物。腐植酸(humic acid)之成分結構複 雜並且隨氣候及地理位置不同其成分變異也大，因此各學者的研究成果難 以互相驗證。自然腐質酸是否具有急毒性或致突變毒性，目前研究文獻並 不多且所得到的結論仍有相當大的岐異。國際上部分研究報告指出腐植酸 是安全的，然而一些研究卻發現台灣烏腳病流行區井水中的腐植酸擁有高 致突變性。目前到底腐質酸中哪些物質是主要的生物毒性貢獻源，則完全 無法知悉。 安姆氏試驗 (Ames test) 是最常被用來探討環境毒物致突變性的方 法。然而近年來螢光菌毒性試驗 (bacterial bioluminescence assays) 也逐漸受 到重視。基於便利、快速、便宜且敏感度高等優點，螢光菌的急毒性及致 突變性試驗 (Microtox 及Mutatox) 也常用於毒性的篩選測試。本研究的主 旨乃是運用螢光菌建立一套適合進行腐質酸急毒性及致突變性的測試方 法，並應用於台灣地區各種腐質酸樣本的篩選測試工作上，藉以針對大量 不同環境來源的腐質酸進行毒性評估。同時搭配分離方法(fractionation method)的建立，試圖探究台灣地區腐質酸主要的生物毒性來源。人們在日 常生活中常會同時暴露腐植酸與其他環境毒物，例如蔬菜中的腐植酸與農 藥、或井水中的砷與腐植酸。因此未來也將探討腐植酸與環境毒物間的毒 性交互作用。腐質酸螢光菌急毒性致突變性毒性鑑定humic acidluminesent bacetriaacute toxicitymutagenicityMicrotoxMutatoxtoxicity identificationProject