The Butterfly Effect: Mild Soil Pollution with Heavy Metals Elicits Major Biological Consequences in Cobalt-Sensitized Broad Bean Model Plants.

Among the heavy metals (HMs), only cobalt induces a polymorphic response in plants, manifesting as chlorophyll morphoses and a 'break-through' effect resulting in the elevated accumulation of other HMs, which makes Co-pretreated broad bean plants an attractive model for investigating soil pollution by HMs. In this study, Co-sensitized plants were used to evaluate the long-term effect of residual industrial pollution by examining biochemical (HO, ascorbic acid, malondialdehyde, free proline, flavonoid, polyphenols, chlorophylls, carotenoids, superoxide dismutase) and molecular (conserved DNA-derived polymorphism and transcript-derived polymorphic fragments) markers after long-term exposure. HM-polluted soil induced a significantly higher frequency of chlorophyll morphoses and lower levels of nonenzymatic antioxidants in Co-pretreated plants.

Response of Tradescantia plants to oxidative stress induced by heavy metal pollution of soils from industrial areas.

Numerous investigations have demonstrated that even soil in which concentrations of individual elements do not exceed permissible limits can cause harmful effects in living organisms. In the present study, polluted-soil-induced oxidative stress was evaluated using Tradescantia clone 4430, which is widely used for genotoxicity evaluations, employing biochemical (superoxide dismutase (SOD), contents of ascorbic acid (AA), carotenoids (Car), hydrogen peroxide (HO), chlorophyll (Chl) a/b ratio), and molecular (RAPD and differential display (DD-PCR)) markers after long-term exposure. The activity (staining intensity) of SOD isoforms in Tradescantia leaves was higher in plants grown in all heavy-metal-polluted test soils compared to the control.

Metal bioaccumulation and mutagenesis in a Tradescantia clone following long-term exposure to soils from urban industrial areas and closed landfills.

Soil mutagens, particularly metals, may persist long after the source of pollution has been removed, representing a hazard to plants, animals, and humans in or near contaminated areas. Often, due to urban growth, previous land uses may be forgotten and hazards overlooked. We exposed Tradescantia clone #4430 plants to soil from two industrial areas (with different former uses) and two urban waste landfills in the city of Vilnius, all of which were long disused.