Effects of Growth Stage and Cd Chemical Form on Cd and Zn Accumulation in <i>Arabidopsis halleri</i> ssp. <i>gemmifera</i>

• Main Authors: Hiroshi Kudo, Chihiro Inoue, Kazuki Sugawara
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-04-01
• Series: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
• Subjects: <i>Arabidopsis halleri</i> ssp. <i>gemmifera</i>; cadmium; chemical form; heavy metal accumulation; phytoremediation
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/8/4214

Cadmium is a hazardous heavy metal and causes contamination globally. Phytoremediation can potentially become a low-cost and eco-friendly technique for mitigating Cd contamination. <i>Arabidopsis halleri</i> ssp. <i>gemmifera</i> hyper-accumulates Cd and Zn, and may be used to remediate Cd-contaminated sites. However, few studies have focused on Cd accumulation by <i>A. halleri</i> ssp. <i>gemmifera</i>. Herein, we demonstrate the accumulation of Cd by <i>A. halleri</i> ssp. <i>gemmifera</i>. The biomass, Cd, and Zn concentration of the plant increased in the 103 days of experimentation. Cd concentration of soil significantly decreased compared to its initial concentration (≈10%). The material balance of Cd uptake by plant and Cd decrement from soil ranged from 63.3% to 83.7% in each growth stage. Analysis indicated that the water-eluted and exchangeable forms of Cd were stable during the experiment. However, Cd concentration extracted with 0.1 M HCl decreased (25% of initial), and this fraction was not bioavailable. The study exhibits the mass balance of Cd between plant uptake and decrement from the soil and the changes in the chemical form of Cd during stages of <i>A. halleri</i> ssp. <i>gemmifera</i> cultivation.