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An assessment of Agropyron cristatum tolerance to cadmium contaminated soil

  • Brief Communication
  • Published:
Biologia Plantarum

Abstract

A pot experiment was conducted in a greenhouse to assess the tolerance of Agropyron cristatum plants to cadmium contaminated soils (0, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, 150, and 200 mg kg−1) for 100 d. Results indicate that Cd in concentrations of 5–50 mg kg−1 had no significant impact on growth, relative membrane permeability (RMP), lipid peroxidation measured as malondialdehyde (MDA) content, and chlorophyll (Chl) content relative to the control. Exposure of these plants to high concentrations of Cd (100–200 mg kg−1) caused a small reduction in growth and Chl content and a slight enhancement of RMP and MDA content compared with the control. In addition, superoxide dismutase (SOD) and peroxidase (POD) activities show an increasing trend with the increase of Cd content in soil. The Cd content in the roots was 4.7–6.1 times higher than that in the shoots under all Cd treatments suggesting that the plant can be classified as a Cd excluder. The translocation factor was low and similar at 25–200 mg kg−1 Cd treatments. In summary, A. cristatum plants tolerated Cd stress and might have potential for the phytoremediation of Cd contaminated soils.

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Abbreviations

Chl:

chlorophyll

MDA:

malondialdehyde

POD:

peroxidases

RMP:

relative membrane permeability

SOD:

superoxide dismutase

TF:

translocation factor

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Beijing Research and Development Center for Grass and Environment, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Beijing, 100097, P.R. China

    Q. Guo, L. Meng, P. C. Mao & X. X. Tian

Authors
  1. Q. Guo
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  2. L. Meng
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  3. P. C. Mao
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  4. X. X. Tian
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to L. Meng.

Additional information

Acknowledgements: This research was financially supported by the Scientific Innovation Ability Construction Project of Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences (grant No. KJCX201101003) and the International Cooperation and Exchange Project of China (grant No. 2008DFR30200). We are grateful to the anonymous reviewers and editors for their valuable suggestions and comments on the initial version of the manuscript.

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Guo, Q., Meng, L., Mao, P.C. et al. An assessment of Agropyron cristatum tolerance to cadmium contaminated soil. Biol Plant 58, 174–178 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10535-013-0359-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10535-013-0359-4

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