Arsenic uptake and distribution in Cucumis melo and Citrullus lanatus plants

• Published in: Environmental progress 2016-05, Vol.35 (3), p.750-757
• Main Authors: Pineda-Chacón, Gabriela, Alarcón-Herrera, María Teresa
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Arsenic; Bioaccumulation; Biotransformation; Citrullus lanatus; Crop yield; Cucumis melo; Fertility; Flowers & plants; Genotype & phenotype; Genotypes; Irrigation; Irrigation water; Physicochemical properties; Plant growth; Plant species; translocation
• ISSN: 1944-7442; 1944-7450
• DOI: 10.1002/ep.12291

The use of groundwater with high arsenic (As) content in agricultural irrigation is a regular practice in many regions of the world, which results in the accumulation of As in soils to levels that can alter their physicochemical properties, decrease fertility, and reduce crop yield. Plants absorb many elements from soil and irrigation water. Some of these elements have a biological function but others can be toxic to the plants such as As. The presence of As in plants pose a risk due to the possible bioaccumulation of this metalloid through the trophic chains. The uptake, biotransformation, and bioaccumulation mechanisms of As occurring in plants is substantially affected by plant species and genotypes. The effects and distribution of As in melon (Cucumis melo) and watermelon plants (Citrullus lanatus) irrigated with As in a soil mesocosm were evaluated. The accumulation of As for Cucumis melo and Citrullus lanatus is presented according to the following: root > leaf > stem. In a period of 35 weeks with 1.4 mg L−1 of As concentration in irrigation water, adverse effects on the development of both genotypes were observed. For these As concentrations, Citrullus lanatus showed a clear reduction of root growth. © 2016 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Environ Prog, 35: 750–757, 2016