Accumulation of arsenic in tissues of rice plant (Oryza sativa L.) and its distribution in fractions of rice grain

A study was conducted to investigate the accumulation and distribution of arsenic in different fractions of rice grain (Oryza sativa L.) collected from arsenic affected area of Bangladesh. The agricultural soil of study area has become highly contaminated with arsenic due to the excessive use of arsenic-rich underground water (0.070 ± 0.006 mg l-1, n = 6) for irrigation. Arsenic content in tissues of rice plant and in fractions of rice grain of two widely cultivated rice varieties, namely BRRI dhan28 and BRRI hybrid dhan1, were determined. Regardless of rice varieties, arsenic content was about 28- and 75-folds higher in root than that of shoot and raw rice grain, respectively. In fractions of parboiled and non-parboiled rice grain of both varieties, the order of arsenic concentrations was; rice hull > bran-polish > brown rice > raw rice > polish rice. Arsenic content was higher in non-parboiled rice grain than that of parboiled rice. Arsenic concentrations in parboiled and non-parboiled brown rice of BRRI dhan28 were 0.8 ± 0.1 and 0.5 ± 0.0 mg kg-1 dry weight, respectively while those of BRRI hybrid dhan1 were 0.8 ± 0.2 and 0.6 ± 0.2 mg kg-1 dry weight, respectively. However, parboiled and non-parboiled polish rice grain of BRRI dhan28 contained 0.4 ± 0.0 and 0.3 ± 0.1 mg kg-1 dry weight of arsenic, respectively while those of BRRI hybrid dhan1 contained 0.43 ± 0.01 and 0.5 ± 0.0 mg kg-1 dry weight, respectively. Both polish and brown rice are readily cooked for human consumption. The concentration of arsenic found in the present study is much lower than the permissible limit in rice (1.0 mg kg-1) according to WHO recommendation. Thus, rice grown in soils of Bangladesh contaminated with arsenic of 14.5 ± 0.1 mg kg-1 could be considered safe for human consumption. © 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.