Root enhancement in cytokinin-deficient oilseed rape causes leaf mineral enrichment, increases the chlorophyll concentration under nutrient limitation and enhances the phytoremediation capacity.

Background: Cytokinin is a negative regulator of root growth, and a reduction of the cytokinin content or signalling causes the formation a larger root system in model plants, improves their growth under drought and nutrient limitation and causes increased accumulation of elements in the shoot. Roots are an important but understudied target of plant breeding. Here we have therefore explored whether root enhancement by lowering the cytokinin content can also be achieved in oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.

Feasibility of labile Zn phytoextraction using enhanced tobacco and sunflower: results of five- and one-year field-scale experiments in Switzerland.

Phytoextraction with somaclonal variants of tobacco and sunflower mutant lines (non-GMs) with enhanced metal uptake and tolerance can be a sustainable alternative to conventional destructive decontamination methods, especially for stripping bioavailable zinc excess in topsoil. The overall results of a 5-year time series experiment at field scale in north-eastern Switzerland confirm that the labile Zn pool in soil can be lowered by 45-70%, whereas subplots without phytoextraction treatment maintained labile Zn concentrations. In 2011, the phytoextraction experiment site was enlarged by a factor of 3, and the labile 0.

Phytoremediation of contaminated soils and groundwater: lessons from the field.

Background, Aim, And Scope: The use of plants and associated microorganisms to remove, contain, inactivate, or degrade harmful environmental contaminants (generally termed phytoremediation) and to revitalize contaminated sites is gaining more and more attention. In this review, prerequisites for a successful remediation will be discussed. The performance of phytoremediation as an environmental remediation technology indeed depends on several factors including the extent of soil contamination, the availability and accessibility of contaminants for rhizosphere microorganisms and uptake into roots (bioavailability), and the ability of the plant and its associated microorganisms to intercept, absorb, accumulate, and/or degrade the contaminants.

Response of antioxidant enzymes in Nicotiana tabacum clones during phytoextraction of heavy metals.

Background, Aim, And Scope: Tobacco, Nicotiana tabacum, is a widely used model plant for growth on heavy-metal-contaminated sites. Its high biomass and deep rooting system make it interesting for phytoextraction. In the present study, we investigated the antioxidative activities and glutathione-dependent enzymes of different tobacco clones optimized for better Cd and Zn accumulation in order to characterize their performance in the field.

Bioenergy to save the world. Producing novel energy plants for growth on abandoned land.

Background And Aim: Following to the 2006 climate summit, the European Union formally set the goal of limiting global warming to 2 degrees Celsius. But even today, climate change is already affecting people and ecosystems. Examples are melting glaciers and polar ice, reports about thawing permafrost areas, dying coral reefs, rising sea levels, changing ecosystems and fatal heat periods.

Chemical mutagenesis--a promising technique to increase metal concentration and extraction in sunflowers.

Since most of the metal-hyperaccumulating wild plants only produce very low biomass and many high-yielding crops accumulate only moderate amounts of metals, the current research is mainly focused on overcoming these limitations and the optimization of metal phytoextraction. The main goal of the present study was the improvement of metal concentration and extraction properties of Helianthus annuus L by chemical mutagenesis (the non-GMO approach). Sunflowers--hybrid cultivar Salut and inbred lines-were treated with the chemical mutagen ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS).

In vitro breeding of Brassica juncea L. to enhance metal accumulation and extraction properties.

In vitro breeding and somaclonal variation were used as tools to improve the potential of Indian mustard (Brassica juncea L.) to extract and accumulate toxic metals. Calli from B.

Screening of sunflower cultivars for metal phytoextraction in a contaminated field prior to mutagenesis.

Sunflower can be used for the remediation of metal-contaminated soils. Its high biomass production makes this plant species interestingfor phytoextraction and using sunflower oil for a technical purpose may improve the economic balance of phytoremediation. The aim of the present field study was to screen 15 commercial cultivars of Helianthus annuus L.