Chromium Hyper-Tolerant sp. MH778713 Assists Phytoremediation of Heavy Metals by Mesquite Trees ().

Heavy metal accumulation in mesquite trees () growing in aluminum, titanium, chromium and zirconium-polluted soils of a semi-arid region in Mexico was investigated using wavelength dispersive X-ray fluorescence analysis. The results showed that trees can hyper accumulate up to 4100 mg/kg of Al, 14000 mg/kg of Fe, 1600 mg/kg of Ti, 2500 mg/kg of Zn, but not chromium, regarding high chromium concentrations found in soils (435 mg/kg). Since plant-associated microorganism can modulate phytoremediation efficiency, the biodiversity of associated bacteria was studied.