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Aluminium alleviates fluoride toxicity in tea (Camellia sinensis)

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Abstract

Background and aims

Tea is a strong accumulator of both aluminium (Al) and fluoride (F). We tested the hypothesis that Al helps detoxify F in tea plants by forming Al-F complexes.

Methods

Tea plants were grown hydroponically with a range of Al and F concentrations and in a soil pot experiment with amendments of NaF and acids. Growth and the uptake of F and Al were determined. Chemical species of F in the nutrient solutions and the cell saps of roots and leaves were determined by 19F NMR.

Results

In hydroponic experiments, F inhibited the growth of new roots and shoot tips in the absence of Al in the nutrient solutions, whereas Al stimulated root growth and alleviated the toxicity of F. Aluminium generally increased F concentration in roots but decreased F concentration in leaves. Geochem-PC calculations and 19F NMR showed the presence of AlF2+, AlF2 + and AlF3 0 in the nutrient solutions when Al and F were present. Aluminium markedly decreased the NMR peak of free F in the cell saps from roots and leaves. An Al-F complex likely to be AlF2+ was detected in the leaf cell sap from the plants treated with both F and Al. In the soil pot experiment, F caused leaf necrosis when the leaf Al to F molar ratio was smaller than 1.

Conclusions

Tea plants are sensitive to F toxicity in the absence of Al. Aluminium alleviates F toxicity in tea by forming Al-F complexes.

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Acknowledgments

The study was funded by Unilever Research and Development, the Innovative Research Team Development Plan of the Ministry of Education of China (grant IRT1256), the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions (PAPD) and the and the 111 project (B12009). We thank Dr Jianyun Ruan for providing seeds and seedlings of tea used in the present study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Germplasm Enhancement, College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, 210095, China

    Ying Yang, Chao-Feng Huang & Fang-Jie Zhao

  2. State Key Laboratory of Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, College of Life Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China

    Yu Liu

  3. Unilever Research and Development, Colworth Science Park, Sharnbrook, Bedford, MK441LQ, UK

    Jacquie de Silva

  4. Rothamsted Research, Harpenden, Hertfordshire, AL5 2JQ, UK

    Fang-Jie Zhao

Authors
  1. Ying Yang
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  2. Yu Liu
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  3. Chao-Feng Huang
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  4. Jacquie de Silva
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  5. Fang-Jie Zhao
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Fang-Jie Zhao.

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Responsible Editor: Jian Feng Ma .

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Yang, Y., Liu, Y., Huang, CF. et al. Aluminium alleviates fluoride toxicity in tea (Camellia sinensis). Plant Soil 402, 179–190 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-015-2787-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-015-2787-8

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