Antimony Accumulation, Growth Performance, Antioxidant Defense System and Photosynthesis of Zea mays in Response to Antimony Pollution in Soil

Pan, Xiangliang; Zhang, Daoyong; Chen, Xi; Bao, Anming; Li, Lanhai

Antimony Accumulation, Growth Performance, Antioxidant Defense System and Photosynthesis of Zea mays in Response to Antimony Pollution in Soil

2011

Pan, Xiangliang | Zhang, Daoyong | Chen, Xi | Bao, Anming | Li, Lanhai

Antimony (Sb) pollution in the downstream farmland soil of the Sb mine area has been of a great environmental concern to the local residents. However, effects of Sb on the growth and physiology of crops are still not well known. In the present study, Sb uptake and its effect on growth, antioxidant defense system, and photosynthesis of maize (Zea mays) were investigated. Our results demonstrated that accumulation of Sb in the maize increased with increasing Sb level in the soil. Sb could be easily translocated from root to shoot with a translocation coefficient over 2.05. Plant growth and biomass were reduced due to Sb pollution. Under Sb stress, the activities of peroxidase (POD), superoxide dismutases (SOD), and catalase (CAT) responded differently. The activities of POD and SOD were inhibited when the soil Sb concentration was higher than 50 mg kg−1. CAT activity showed an increasing trend with increasing soil Sb concentration. Chlorophyll synthesis and the maximum photochemical efficiency (F V/F M) were also inhibited significantly under stress of high-level Sb in soil.

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