title: Identification of Calotropis procera L. as a potential phytoaccumulator of heavy metals from contaminated soils in Urban North Central India.
abstract: Lead and cadmium levels were monitored in soil at fifteen urban (riverbank, roadside, industrial and residential) sites in the north central part of India. Calotropis procera, a hardy xerophytic plant was identified and selected for remedial potential as it was seen growing well at all sites. Root and leaf samples were collected simultaneously with soil samples to assess the characteristics of accumulation and tolerance of Pb and Cd in C. procera. Chlorophyll and phenological studies were undertaken to investigate the health of plants. The overall trend of Pb and Cd content in soil and plant samples was in the order Industrial>Roadside>Riverbank>Residential. The highest uptake of both the metals was observed in plants from industrial sites. Sites with more anthropogenic disturbance like vehicular and machinery exhausts exhibited reduced chlorophyll levels, stunted growth as well as a delayed, shortened reproductive phase. The ratios of Pb in leaves to Pb in soil were in the range of 0.60-1.37; while similar ratios of Cd were in the range of 1.25-1.83. Highly significant correlation coefficients were determined between concentrations of Pb and Cd in the samples with R(2) values 0.839 for soil, 0.802 for leaf and 0.819 for root samples. The strong correlation between the degree of contamination and concentrations of Pb and Cd in plant samples identifies C. procera as an effective heavy metal remediator of contaminated lands coupled with environmental stress.
authors.affiliation: Department of Botany, St. John's College, Agra 282 002, India. Electronic address: rohan_rjd@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Rohan J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: D'Souza
authors.affiliation: Department of Botany, St. John's College, Agra 282 002, India.
authors.forename: Mayank
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Varun
authors.affiliation: School of Environmental Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi 110 067, India.
authors.forename: Jamson
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Masih
authors.affiliation: Department of Botany, St. John's College, Agra 282 002, India.
authors.forename: Manoj S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Paul
mesh_terms: D002104:Cadmium / Q000378:metabolism*; D031107:Calotropis / Q000378:metabolism*; D007194:India; D007854:Lead / Q000378:metabolism*; D012989:Soil Pollutants / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D012989:Soil Pollutants; D002104:Cadmium; D007854:Lead