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Effect of zinc and cadmium on physiological and production characteristics in Matricaria recutita

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Biologia Plantarum

Abstract

Effects of zinc (12–180 μM) alone and in mixtures with 12 μM Cd on metal accumulation, dry masses of roots and shoots, root respiration rate, variable to maximum fluorescence ratio (FV/FM), and content of photosynthetic pigments were studied in hydroponically cultivated chamomile (Matricaria recutita) plants. The content of Zn in roots and shoots increased with the increasing external Zn concentration and its accumulation in the roots was higher than that in the shoots. While at lower Zn concentrations (12 and 60 μM) the presence of 12 μM Cd decreased Zn accumulation in the roots, treatment with 120 and 180 μM Zn together with 12 μM Cd caused enhancement of Zn content in the root. Presence of Zn (12–120 μM) decreased Cd accumulation in roots. On the other hand, Cd content in the shoots of plants treated with Zn + Cd exceeded that in the plants treated only with 12 μM Cd. Only higher Zn concentrations (120 and 180 μM) and Zn + Cd mixtures negatively influenced dry mass, chlorophyll (Chl) and carotenoid content, FV/FM and root respiration rate. Chl b was reduced to a higher extent than Chl a.

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Abbreviations

BAF:

bioaccumulation factor

Car:

carotenoids

Chl:

chlorophyll

FV/FM :

variable to maximum fluorescence ratio

PAR:

photosynthetic active radiation

PS 2:

photosystem 2

TF:

translocation factor

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Acknowledgements

This research was financially supported by the Grant Agency VEGA of Ministry of Education of Slovak Republic and Slovak Academy of Sciences, grant No. 1/3489/06.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Plant Physiology and Anatomy, Institute of Experimental Biology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kotlářská 2, CZ-61137, Brno, Czech Republic

    M. Kummerová & Š. Zezulka

  2. Institute of Chemistry, Comenius University, Mlynská dolina, SK-84215, Bratislava, Slovak Republic

    K. Kráľová

  3. Department of Soil Science, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Comenius University, Mlynská dolina, SK-84215, Bratislava, Slovak Republic

    E. Masarovičová

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  1. M. Kummerová
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  2. Š. Zezulka
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  3. K. Kráľová
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  4. E. Masarovičová
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Correspondence to Š. Zezulka.

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Kummerová, M., Zezulka, Š., Kráľová, K. et al. Effect of zinc and cadmium on physiological and production characteristics in Matricaria recutita . Biol Plant 54, 308–314 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10535-010-0053-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10535-010-0053-8

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