Prediction of methylmercury accumulation in rice grains by chemical extraction methods.

To explore the possibility of using chemical extraction methods to predict phytoavailability/bioaccumulation of soil-bound MeHg, MeHg extractions by three widely-used extractants (CaCl2, DTPA, and (NH4)2S2O3) were compared with MeHg accumulation in rice grains. Despite of variations in characteristics of different soils, MeHg extracted by (NH4)2S2O3 (highly affinitive to MeHg) correlated well with grain MeHg levels. Thus (NH4)2S2O3 extraction, solubilizing not only weakly-bound and but also strongly-bound MeHg, may provide a measure of 'phytoavailable MeHg pool' for rice plants.

Aluminum could be transported via phloem in Camellia oleifera Abel.

Aluminum (Al) accumulation and long-distance transport in oil tea (Camellia oleifera Abel.), known to be an Al accumulator, was investigated. The average Al concentration in the embryo of oil tea seeds was 389 mg Al kg(-1) dry weight, which was higher than seeds of other Al accumulators.