Abstract
Barium (Ba) is a non-essential element that can cause toxicity in living organisms and environmental contamination. Plants absorb barium predominantly in its divalent cationic form Ba2+. Sulfur (S) can decrease the availability of Ba2+ in the soil by causing its precipitation as barium sulfate, a compound known for its very low solubility. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of soil sulfate supply in soil Ba fractions, as well as on plant growth, and Ba and S uptake by lettuce plants grown in artificially Ba-contaminated soil under greenhouse conditions. The treatments consisted of five Ba doses (0, 150, 300, 450, and 600 mg kg−1 Ba, as barium chloride) combined with three S doses (0, 40, and 80 mg kg−1 S, as potassium sulfate). The treatments were applied to soil samples (2.5 kg) and placed in plastic pots for plant cultivation. The Ba fractions analyzed were extractable-Ba, organic matter-Ba, oxides associated-Ba, and residual-Ba. The results indicate that the extractable-Ba fraction was the main one responsible for Ba bioavailability and phytotoxicity, probably corresponding to the exchangeable Ba in the soil. The dose of 80 mg kg−1 of S reduced extractable-Ba by 30% at higher Ba doses while it increased the other fractions. Furthermore, S supply attenuated the growth inhibition in plants under Ba exposure. Thus, S supply protected the lettuce plants from Ba toxicity by reduction of Ba availability in soil and plant growth enhancement. The results suggest that sulfate supply is a suitable strategy for managing Ba-contaminated areas.
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Acknowledgements
The authors thank the CNPq (Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico) for financial support for the research project and scholarship to the first author [155319/2017-5]. They also thank FAPEMIG (Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais) and CAPES (Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior) for their funding support, as well as the participants of the Plant Nutrition Study Group (GENP-UFLA), for help in the research project.
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This work was supported by CNPq (Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico) [155319/2017-5], FAPEMIG (Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais), and CAPES (Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior).
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Conceptualization: AASC, VF, MLSS. Methodology: AASC, LRGG, VF, MLSS. Validation: all authors. Investigation: all authors. Formal analysis: AASC. Visualization: AASC, AAL. Writing—original draft: AASC. Resources: LRGG, VF, MLSS. Supervision: LRGG, VF, MLSS. Project administration: MLSS. Writing—review and editing: all authors.
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de Souza Cardoso, A.A., Nunes, A.P.P., Batista, É.R. et al. Sulfate supply decreases barium availability, uptake, and toxicity in lettuce plants grown in a tropical Ba-contaminated soil. Environ Sci Pollut Res 30, 53938–53947 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-023-25960-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-023-25960-3