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Endogenous trans-zeatin content in plants with different metal-accumulating ability: a field survey

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Abstract

A field survey was conducted to evaluate soil metal pollution and endogenous trans-zeatin content in the leaves of plants growing at six sites in a metal-polluted area located in Gejiu, Yunnan, China. Five plant species were collected, and the physicochemical properties and concentrations of five metals in the soil were analyzed. The trans-zeatin content in plant leaves was measured by high-performance liquid chromatography. Based on the Nemerow pollution index, the six sites were classified into four levels of pollution (i.e., low, medium, high, and severely high). The degree of soil metal pollution was cadmium (Cd) > arsenic (As) > lead (Pb) > zinc (Zn) > copper (Cu). The leaf trans-zeatin content in Pteris vittata (an arsenic hyperaccumulator) increased significantly by 98.6 % in soil with a severely high level of pollution compared with soil at a low level of pollution. However, in non-hyperaccumulators Bidens pilosa var. radiata and Ageratina adenophora, a significant decrease in leaf trans-zeatin content of 35.6 and 87.6 %, respectively, was observed. The leaf trans-zeatin content in Artemisia argyi also decreased significantly by 73.6 % in high metal-polluted soil compared with that in medium metal-polluted soil. Furthermore, significant correlations were observed between leaf trans-zeatin content in Pteris vittata and As, Pb, and Cd concentrations in the soil; however, either no correlation or a negative one was observed in the other plant species. Therefore, a high content of trans-zeatin in the leaves of Pteris vittata may play an important role in its normal growth and tolerance to metals.

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Abbreviations

ANOVA:

Analysis of variance

CTK:

Cytokinin

DTPA :

Diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid

GA :

Gibberellin

HPLC :

High-performance liquid chromatography

PGR :

Plant growth regulator

PVPP :

Polyvinylpolypyrrolidone

ROS :

Reactive oxygen species

TEA :

Triethanolamine

Z :

Trans-zeatin

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Acknowledgments

This work was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 31360132) and Candidates of the Young and Middle Aged Academic Leaders of Yunnan Province (2012HB007).

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  1. Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, Yunnan, 650500, People’s Republic of China

    Qinchun Li, Xiaoyan Yang, Hongbin Wang, Haijuan Wang & Shujuan He

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  1. Qinchun Li
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  2. Xiaoyan Yang
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  3. Hongbin Wang
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Correspondence to Hongbin Wang.

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Li, Q., Yang, X., Wang, H. et al. Endogenous trans-zeatin content in plants with different metal-accumulating ability: a field survey. Environ Sci Pollut Res 23, 23422–23435 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-016-7544-x

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