title: Elevated CO2 levels affects the concentrations of copper and cadmium in crops grown in soil contaminated with heavy metals under fully open-air field conditions.
abstract: Elevated CO(2) levels and the increase in heavy metals in soils through pollution are serious problems worldwide. Whether elevated CO(2) levels will affect plants grown in heavy-metal-polluted soil and thereby influence food quality and safety is not clear. Using a free-air CO(2) enrichment (FACE) system, we investigated the impacts of elevated atmospheric CO(2) on the concentrations of copper (Cu) or cadmium (Cd) in rice and wheat grown in soil with different concentrations of the metals in the soil. In the two-year study, elevated CO(2) levels led to lower Cu concentrations and higher Cd concentrations in shoots and grain of both rice and wheat grown in the respective contaminated soil. Elevated CO(2) levels slightly but significantly lowered the pH of the soil and led to changes in Cu and Cd fractionation in the soil. Our study indicates that elevated CO(2) alters the distribution of contaminant elements in soil and plants, thereby probably affecting food quality and safety.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, China. hyguo@nju.edu.cn
authors.forename: Hongyan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.forename: Jianguo
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Yuanyuan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yin
authors.forename: Daping
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pei
authors.forename: Rong
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ji
authors.forename: Jichun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Xiaorong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000383:Agriculture; D000388:Air; D002104:Cadmium / Q000378:metabolism*; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000032:analysis*; D005591:Chemical Fractionation; D002681:China; D003300:Copper / Q000378:metabolism*; D018556:Crops, Agricultural / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration / Q000187:drug effects; D012275:Oryza / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism; D012987:Soil; D012989:Soil Pollutants / Q000633:toxicity*; D014908:Triticum / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D012987:Soil; D012989:Soil Pollutants; D002104:Cadmium; D002245:Carbon Dioxide; D003300:Copper