Perspective of mitigating atmospheric heavy metal pollution: using mosses as biomonitoring and indicator organism

• Published in: Environmental science and pollution research international 2019-10, Vol.26 (29), p.29620-29638
• Main Authors: Mahapatra, Biswajita, Dhal, Nabin Kumar, Dash, Aditya Kishore, Panda, Bibhu Prasad, Panigrahi, Kishore Chandra Sekhar, Pradhan, Abanti
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Air monitoring; Air Pollutants - analysis; Air Pollutants - metabolism; Air Pollutants - toxicity; Air Pollution; Aquatic Pollution; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Biomonitoring; Biosphere; Bryophyta; Bryophyta - chemistry; Bryophyta - drug effects; Bryophyta - physiology; Bryopsida - chemistry; Climatic zones; Detoxification; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecotoxicology; Environment; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Health; Environmental monitoring; Environmental Monitoring - methods; Environmental science; Genetic diversity; Heavy metals; Indicator species; Metals, Heavy - analysis; Metals, Heavy - metabolism; Metals, Heavy - toxicity; Mosses; Pollutants; Pollution; Pollution monitoring; Review Article; Trace metals; Waste Water Technology; Water Management; Water Pollution Control
• ISSN: 0944-1344; 1614-7499
• DOI: 10.1007/s11356-019-06270-z

Mosses were proved as an ideal and reliable biomonitor as well as an indicator of atmospheric trace metal pollution. They are used as model indicator species of air pollution since long back due to their simple structure, genetic diversity, totipotency, rapid colony-forming ability, and high metal resistance behavior. Bryomonitoring technique is gradually being popularized as an economically viable procedure for estimating the degrees of environmental health and evaluating the toxic pollutants in biosphere. Thus, in the present scenario, many parts of the world use these organisms for monitoring the air pollution. This article describes an overview of the relationship of terrestrial mosses with trace metals with respect to their uptake, accumulation, and toxification as well as detoxification and tolerance mechanisms. The review article explicitly expresses the caliber of the cryptogamic mosses in establishing the pristine environment around the world. It also highlights the underpinning mechanisms and potential for future research directions. We have referred more than 250 articles, which deals with the assessment and impact of different heavy metals on 52 numbers of different moss species belongs to different climatic zones. The present review covers the research work in this area carried out worldwide since 1965.