title: Mercury uptake and effects on growth in Jatropha curcas.
abstract: The use of metal-accumulating plants for the phytoremediation of contaminated soils is gaining more attention. Mercury (Hg)-contaminated soils from historical gold mines represent a potential risk to human health and the environment. Therefore, Jatropha curcas plant, that has shown its tolerance to these environments, is a species of particular interest to implement phytoremediation techniques in gold mining sites. In this work, the behavior of J. curcas was assessed in different hydroponic cultures fortified with Hg at concentrations of 5, 10, 20, 40, and 80μgHg/mL (T5, T10, T20, T40 and T80, respectively). After exposure, plant growth, net photosynthesis, leaf area, and Hg accumulation were determined and variables such as net Hg uptake, effective Hg accumulation, translocation and bioaccumulation factors were calculated. Accumulation of Hg in root and leaf tissues increased with respect to the Hg concentrations in the hydroponic culture, with statistically significant differences (p<0.05) among treatments. Moreover, Hg concentration in roots was 7 and 12-fold higher in average than in plant leaves and shoots, respectively. Many effects were found in the development of plants, especially related with loss of biomass and leaf area, with significant growth inhibition related to control values (>50% with treatment T5). Moreover, percentage of inhibition was even higher (>60%) with same treatment for net photosynthesis. Finally, it should be highlighted that for T40 and T80 treatments, plant growth and photosynthesis were almost completely depleted (88%-95%).
authors.affiliation: University of Córdoba, Faculty of Basic Sciences, Department of Chemistry, Water, Applied and Environmental Chemistry Group, Monteria, Colombia. Electronic address: jlmarrugon@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Marrugo-Negrete
authors.affiliation: University of Córdoba, Faculty of Basic Sciences, Department of Chemistry, Water, Applied and Environmental Chemistry Group, Monteria, Colombia.
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Durango-Hernández
authors.affiliation: University of Córdoba, Faculty of Basic Sciences, Department of Chemistry, Water, Applied and Environmental Chemistry Group, Monteria, Colombia.
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pinedo-Hernández
authors.affiliation: University of Córdoba, Faculty of Basic Sciences, Department of Chemistry, Water, Applied and Environmental Chemistry Group, Monteria, Colombia.
authors.forename: Germán
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Enamorado-Montes
authors.affiliation: Environmental Chemistry Department, Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Research, IDÆA-CSIC, E-08034 Barcelona, Spain. Electronic address: sergi.diez@idaea.csic.es.
authors.forename: Sergi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Díez
mesh_terms: D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D031286:Jatropha / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D008628:Mercury / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000633:toxicity; D018515:Plant Leaves / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D012987:Soil; D012989:Soil Pollutants / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000633:toxicity
chemical_list: D012987:Soil; D012989:Soil Pollutants; D008628:Mercury
keywords: Growth inhibition; Hydroponic; Jatropha curcas; Mercury; Phytoextraction