Elemental mercury accumulation in Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms-Laubach

The aquatic macrophyte Eichhornia crassipes has great potential for the control of Hg pollution in the environment. The aim of this study was to investigate the capability of E. crassipes to accumulate elemental mercury (Hg 0 ). The plants were exposed for 30 days to 5, 10, 20, 40, and 80 mg of Hg 0...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental science and pollution research international 2023-01, Vol.30 (4), p.9898-9913
Main Authors: Monroy-Licht, Andrea, Méndez-Cuadro, Darío, Olivero-Verbel, Jesus
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aquatic Pollution
Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution
Biodegradation, Environmental
Carotenoids - metabolism
Chlorophyll - metabolism
Earth and Environmental Science
Ecotoxicology
Eichhornia
Environment
Environmental Chemistry
Environmental Health
Mercury - analysis
Research Article
Waste Water Technology
Water Management
Water Pollutants, Chemical - metabolism
Water Pollution Control
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Summary:The aquatic macrophyte Eichhornia crassipes has great potential for the control of Hg pollution in the environment. The aim of this study was to investigate the capability of E. crassipes to accumulate elemental mercury (Hg 0 ). The plants were exposed for 30 days to 5, 10, 20, 40, and 80 mg of Hg 0 in a 1-L Hoagland medium with the Hg 0 settled at the bottom of the flask. The roots of the plants did not touch the mercury during the treatment. After exposure, the total Hg (T-Hg) concentrations in the roots, leaves, and stems were measured using a direct mercury (Hg) analyzer. The highest concentrations were found at 80 mg Hg 0 treatment in the roots, leaves, and stems, in that order. The translocation factor indicated a poor capability of Hg to translocate from the roots to the shoots. The relative growth and the root-length inhibition measurements showed that the differences between Hg 0 treatments were not significant. In addition, the treatments negatively affected the chlorophyll concentration. The carotenoid content was found to be significantly different at 20 and 40 mg of Hg 0  in 1 L. Regarding the carbonyl index in root proteins, significant differences compared to control were found at the highest Hg treatment. Based on these results, it was shown that E. crassipes is able to take up elemental Hg from Hoagland medium. However, the Hg 0 treatments did not show a strong stress-response activation mechanism in the evaluated plant tissues.
ISSN:1614-7499
1614-7499
DOI:10.1007/s11356-022-22521-y