Effect of Heavy Metals on Plants, 2nd Volume

Topic Information

Dear Colleagues,

Following the successful completion of Volume I of “Effect of Heavy Metals on Plants” and the great interest in this research topic, we are pleased to announce the launch of Volume II.

Currently, scientific inquiries conducted by numerous research groups often focus on expanding our knowledge of the influence of the effects of numerous factors that destabilize plant growth and development. This includes both wild species and those used by humans for various purposes, primarily as sources of food, animal feed, metabolites for human and livestock welfare, wood and various byproducts. Plants are an important material used in landscaping and are essential in some technologies for the remediation of various pollutants from different environmental compartments.

The demand for non-ferrous metals, such as gold, silver, platinum, copper, zinc, lead, nickel, tin, titanium, cadmium, beryllium, bismuth, cobalt, cerium, mercury, chromium, vanadium, tungsten or zirconium, is still very high in various fields of economic activity due to their resistance to rust and corrosion. Most of these metals are useful in electronic equipment, electrical power cables or metal constructions, and many other industrial applications. Therefore, economically viable ore deposits containing these elements continue to be mined around the world. The extraction of ores, their processing and further industrial production are frequently associated with serious environmental pollution. Agroecosystems receive large amounts of heavy metals through water or air, resulting in contamination of crops. An inevitable consequence is an increased incidence of human diseases such as cancer or serious diseases of the cardiovascular system.

In the era of the Green Deal, we should only use ecologically justified technologies for environmental remediation, including phytoremediation techniques that utilize woody and herbaceous plants. Nevertheless, the methodology of this biological process should be tailored to specific in situ conditions, especially when the matrix (soil or water) is contaminated with a mixture of pollutants and the plants are exposed to additional stress factors and soil water deficiency, soil salinity or temperature stress. Alternative approaches include the use of soil amendments and the biotization or mycorrhization of plants to increase their tolerance and thus survival under harsh growing conditions. These aspects of remediation technology are what we should now focus on to significantly reduce the human population’s exposure to contaminated food.

The purpose of this Special Issue is to collect and present the contributions of active groups engaged in basic and applied research on all aspects of plant functioning under stress, especially in terms of effective ecosystem pollution control. Research articles, case studies, reviews and perspectives are all welcome. Even incomplete results and any kind of feedback will be helpful to the entire scientific community involved in research on the above-mentioned topics.

Prof. Dr. Yinbo Gan
Prof. Dr. Martin Backor
Topic Editors

Keywords

Participating Journals

Journal Name	Impact Factor	CiteScore	Launched Year	First Decision (median)	APC
Agriculture agriculture	3.6	3.6	2011	17.7 Days	CHF 2600	Submit
Agronomy agronomy	3.7	5.2	2011	15.8 Days	CHF 2600	Submit
Forests forests	2.9	4.5	2010	16.9 Days	CHF 2600	Submit
Plants plants	4.5	5.4	2012	15.3 Days	CHF 2700	Submit
Stresses stresses	-	-	2021	17.1 Days	CHF 1000	Submit

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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All Agriculture Agronomy Forests Plants Stresses

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17 pages, 6035 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

Organic Materials Promote Rhododendron simsii Growth and Rhizosphere Soil Properties in a Lead–Zinc Mining Wasteland

by Yunchun Chen, Wei Li, Xinchen Cai, Bo Li, Fangdong Zhan, Yanqun Zu and Yongmei He

Plants 2024, 13(6), 891; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13060891 - 20 Mar 2024

Viewed by 490

Abstract

The mining of metal minerals generates considerable mining wasteland areas, which are characterized by poor soil properties that hinder plant growth. In this study, a field plot experiment was carried out in the mining wasteland of the Lanping lead–zinc mine in Yunnan Province [...] Read more.

The mining of metal minerals generates considerable mining wasteland areas, which are characterized by poor soil properties that hinder plant growth. In this study, a field plot experiment was carried out in the mining wasteland of the Lanping lead–zinc mine in Yunnan Province to study the effects of applying three organic materials—biochar (B), organic fertilizer (OF), and sludge (S)—at concentrations of 1% (mass fraction), on promoting the soil of mining wasteland and the growth of two plant varieties (Huolieniao and Yingshanhong). The results showed that the amount of available nutrients in the surface soil of a mining wasteland could be considerably increased by S and OF compared to the control check (CK). In the rhizosphere soils of two Rhododendron simsii varieties, the application of S increased the available phosphorus (P) content by 66.4% to 108.8% and the alkali-hydrolyzed nitrogen (N) content by 61.7% to 295.5%. However, the contents of available cadmium (Cd) and available lead (Pb) were reduced by 17.1% to 32.0% and 14.8% to 19.0%, respectively. Moreover, three organic materials increased the photosynthetic rate and biomass of two R. simsii varieties. Specifically, OF and S were found to significantly increase the biomass of R. simsii. Organic materials have direct impacts on the increased plant height and biomass of R. simsii. Additionally, organic materials indirectly contribute to the growth of R. simsii by reducing the content of available Cd and available Pb in rhizosphere soil while increasing the content of available nutrients according to the structural equation model (SEM). Overall, S can stabilize Cd and Pb, increase soil nutrient contents, and promote the growth of R. simsii effectively, and has great potential in the vegetation reconstruction of mining wasteland. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Effect of Heavy Metals on Plants, 2nd Volume)

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15 pages, 1805 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

The Combined Use of Soil Conditioner and Foliar Sulfur Spray Successfully Prevents Dark Pericarp Disease Induced by Manganese Toxicity in Litchi

by Huilin Liu, Cuihua Bai, Yongjun Guo, Zhuo Yang, Xinping Luo, Silin Liu, Yinghui Huang and Lixian Yao

Agronomy 2024, 14(3), 449; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy14030449 - 24 Feb 2024

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Abstract

Manganese toxicity is a major obstacle to agriculture in acid soils. Dark pericarp disease (DPD) is a newly spread physiological disorder induced by excess Mn in litchi, leading to undesirable fruit appearance and substantial economic loss. In this work, broadcast of alkaline soil [...] Read more.

Manganese toxicity is a major obstacle to agriculture in acid soils. Dark pericarp disease (DPD) is a newly spread physiological disorder induced by excess Mn in litchi, leading to undesirable fruit appearance and substantial economic loss. In this work, broadcast of alkaline soil conditioner in winter, followed by foliar sprays of ascorbic acid and sulfur solution at fruit development, was adopted to examine the effect of these combinations on DPD alleviation in a litchi orchard, with DPD morbidities of 70~85% in recent ten years. The combination of soil conditioner broadcast and foliar water spray was used as the control. At harvest, DPD incidence was significantly decreased by sulfur spray (3.3 ± 1.0%) and slightly reduced by ascorbic acid spray (10.7 ± 8.0%) compared to the control (12.9 ± 7.6%). Soil pH and available Mn were significantly increased and reduced by the soil conditioner broadcast. Sulfur spray significantly inhibited Mn uptake but enhanced the accumulation of Mg, Ca, sugars and cyanidin-3-rutinoside in the pericarp, leading to improved fruit pigmentation. Antioxidase activities were regulated to resist Mn stress by sulfur spray. The spray of ascorbic acid could not mitigate DPD as expected, probably due to the dose used. Conclusively, this study provides a practicable approach to mitigate Mn phytoavailability in acid soils. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Effect of Heavy Metals on Plants, 2nd Volume)

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21 pages, 2960 KiB  

Open AccessReview

The Multifaceted Role of Jasmonic Acid in Plant Stress Mitigation: An Overview

by Muhammad Rehman, Muhammad Sulaman Saeed, Xingming Fan, Abdul Salam, Raheel Munir, Muhammad Umair Yasin, Ali Raza Khan, Sajid Muhammad, Bahar Ali, Imran Ali, Jamshaid Khan and Yinbo Gan

Plants 2023, 12(23), 3982; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12233982 - 27 Nov 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2174

Abstract

Plants, being sessile, have developed complex signaling and response mechanisms to cope with biotic and abiotic stressors. Recent investigations have revealed the significant contribution of phytohormones in enabling plants to endure unfavorable conditions. Among these phytohormones, jasmonic acid (JA) and its derivatives, collectively [...] Read more.

Plants, being sessile, have developed complex signaling and response mechanisms to cope with biotic and abiotic stressors. Recent investigations have revealed the significant contribution of phytohormones in enabling plants to endure unfavorable conditions. Among these phytohormones, jasmonic acid (JA) and its derivatives, collectively referred to as jasmonates (JAs), are of particular importance and are involved in diverse signal transduction pathways to regulate various physiological and molecular processes in plants, thus protecting plants from the lethal impacts of abiotic and biotic stressors. Jasmonic acid has emerged as a central player in plant defense against biotic stress and in alleviating multiple abiotic stressors in plants, such as drought, salinity, vernalization, and heavy metal exposure. Furthermore, as a growth regulator, JA operates in conjunction with other phytohormones through a complex signaling cascade to balance plant growth and development against stresses. Although studies have reported the intricate nature of JA as a biomolecular entity for the mitigation of abiotic stressors, their underlying mechanism and biosynthetic pathways remain poorly understood. Therefore, this review offers an overview of recent progress made in understanding the biosynthesis of JA, elucidates the complexities of its signal transduction pathways, and emphasizes its pivotal role in mitigating abiotic and biotic stressors. Moreover, we also discuss current issues and future research directions for JAs in plant stress responses. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Effect of Heavy Metals on Plants, 2nd Volume)

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