title: Accumulation of Heavy Metals in Vegetable Species Planted in Contaminated Soils and the Health Risk Assessment.
abstract: The objectives of the present study were to investigate heavy metal accumulation in 22 vegetable species and to assess the human health risks of vegetable consumption. Six vegetable types were cultivated on farmland contaminated with heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Cu, Zn, and As). The target hazard quotient (THQ) method was used to assess the human health risks posed by heavy metals through vegetable consumption. Clear differences were found in the concentrations of heavy metals in edible parts of the different vegetables. The concentrations of heavy metals decreased in the sequence as leafy vegetables > stalk vegetables/root vegetables/solanaceous vegetables > legume vegetables/melon vegetables. The ability of leafy vegetables to uptake and accumulate heavy metals was the highest, and that of melon vegetables was the lowest. This indicated that the low accumulators (melon vegetables) were suitable for being planted on contaminated soil, while the high accumulators (leafy vegetables) were unsuitable. In Shizhuyuan area, China, the total THQ values of adults and children through consumption of vegetables were 4.12 and 5.41, respectively, suggesting that the residents may be facing health risks due to vegetable consumption, and that children were vulnerable to the adverse effects of heavy metal ingestion.
authors.affiliation: College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha 410004, China. evileyes.z@163.com.
authors.forename: Hang
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha 410004, China. trickmen593@126.com.
authors.forename: Wen-Tao
authors.initials: WT
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha 410004, China. bananaxinxin916@sina.com.
authors.forename: Xin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha 410004, China. liulizxj@163.com.|Department of Environmental Science, Changsha Environmental Protection College, Changsha 410004, China. liulizxj@163.com.
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha 410004, China. gujiaofeng@163.com.
authors.forename: Jiao-Feng
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Gu
authors.affiliation: College of Science, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha 410004, China. wenlei_wang@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Wen-Lei
authors.initials: WL
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha 410004, China. zoujialing1@126.com.
authors.forename: Jia-Ling
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Zou
authors.affiliation: College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha 410004, China. 15700718997@163.com.
authors.forename: Tao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tian
authors.affiliation: College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha 410004, China. pqpeng123@sina.com.
authors.forename: Pei-Qin
authors.initials: PQ
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.affiliation: College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha 410004, China. liaobohan1020@163.com.
authors.forename: Bo-Han
authors.initials: BH
authors.lastname: Liao
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002681:China; D004787:Environmental Pollution; D005506:Food Contamination / Q000032:analysis*; D006305:Health Status Indicators; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000032:analysis*; D008875:Middle Aged; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012989:Soil Pollutants / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000032:analysis*; D014675:Vegetables / Q000737:chemistry*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D019216:Metals, Heavy; D012989:Soil Pollutants
keywords: accumulation; health risk; heavy metal; target hazard quotient (THQ); vegetable