Background, aim, and scope: Zinc is an essential micronutrient element but its concentrations found in contaminated soils frequently exceed those required by the plant and soil organisms, and thus create danger to animal and human health. Phytoremediation is a technique, often employed in remediation of contaminated soils, which aims to remove heavy metals or other contaminants from soils or waters using plants. Arabidopsis (A.) halleri ssp. gemmifera is a plant recently found to be grown vigorously in heavy metal contaminated areas of Japan and it contained remarkably high amount of heavy metals in its shoots. However, the magnitude of Zn accumulation and tolerance in A. halleri ssp. gemmifera need to be investigated for its use as a phytoremediation plant.
Materials and methods: A. halleri ssp. gemmifera was grown for 3 weeks into half-strength nutrient solution with Zn (as ZnSO(4)) levels ranging from 0.2 to 2,000 microM. The harvested plants were separated into shoots and roots, dried in the oven, and ground. The plant tissue was digested with nitric-perchloric acid, and the Zn concentration in the digested solution was measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometer.
Results and discussion: The results showed no reduction in shoot and root dry weight when plants were grown at 0.2 to 2,000 microM Zn in the solution. The highest Zn concentration measured in the shoots was 26,400 mg kg(-1) at 1,000 microM Zn, while in the roots, it was 71,000 mg kg(-1) at 2,000 microM Zn treatment. Similar to the Zn concentration in plant parts, maximum Zn accumulation of 62 mg plant(-1) in the shoots and 22 mg plant(-1) in the roots was obtained at 1,000 and 2,000 microM Zn in the solution. The percentage of Zn translocation in shoot varied from 69% to 90% of the total Zn, indicating that the shoot was the major sink of Zn accumulation in this plant.
Conclusions: The results of this study indicate that the growth of A. halleri ssp. gemmifera was not affected by the Zn level of up to 2,000 microM in the nutrient solution. The concentration of Zn found in shoot indicated that A. halleri ssp. gemmifera has an extraordinary ability to tolerate and accumulate Zn and hence a good candidate for the phytoremediation of Zn-polluted soil.
Recommendations and outlook: Based on the results presented in this study and earlier hydroponics, and field study, A. halleri ssp. gemmifera seems to be a potential heavy metals hyperaccumulator, and could be recommended to use for phytoremediation of Cd- and Zn-contaminated soils.