Metals in Plant Metabolism and Physiology

Topic Information

Dear Colleagues,

Metals are involved in many processes in all living organisms, including plants. Despite the essential role of metals (microelements), some metal elements are not essential and are toxic even at low concentrations. The effect of metals on molecular, biochemical and physiological processes in plants is therefore still a subject of research, particularly in the context of climate change and industrial pollution. This Topic welcomes manuscripts focusing on the effect of essential or toxic metals on metabolic and physiological changes occurring in plants, from molecular to whole-organism changes and from basic to applied research. Both laboratory and field studies are welcome.

Dr. Jozef Kováčik
Dr. Ildikó Matušíková
Topic Editors

Keywords

Participating Journals

Journal Name	Impact Factor	CiteScore	Launched Year	First Decision (median)	APC
Biology biology	4.2	4.0	2012	18.7 Days	CHF 2700
Current Issues in Molecular Biology cimb	3.1	2.4	1999	13.5 Days	CHF 2200
International Journal of Molecular Sciences ijms	5.6	7.8	2000	16.3 Days	CHF 2900
Metabolites metabolites	4.1	5.3	2011	13.2 Days	CHF 2700
Plants plants	4.5	5.4	2012	15.3 Days	CHF 2700

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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All Biology CIMB IJMS Metabolites Plants

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Open AccessArticle

Effects of Inoculation with Stress-Tolerant Rhizobia on the Response of Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) to Combined Salinity and Cadmium Stress

by M. Cecilia Pacheco-Insausti, Ivana Tamara Ponce, Miguel A. Quiñones, Hilda E. Pedranzani and José J. Pueyo

Plants 2023, 12(23), 3972; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12233972 - 25 Nov 2023

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Abstract

Agricultural soil salinization, which is often combined with heavy-metal contamination, is an ever-growing problem in the current era of global change. Legumes have a high potential for nitrogen fixation and are ideal crops for the reclamation of degraded soils. Alfalfa (Medicago sativa [...] Read more.

Agricultural soil salinization, which is often combined with heavy-metal contamination, is an ever-growing problem in the current era of global change. Legumes have a high potential for nitrogen fixation and are ideal crops for the reclamation of degraded soils. Alfalfa (Medicago sativa) is a valuable forage crop cultivated worldwide. Alfalfa plants fertilized with nitrogen or inoculated with a salt- and cadmium-tolerant Sinorhizobium meliloti strain were subjected to combined NaCl and CdCl₂ stresses. Our results showed that inoculated plants presented higher aerial biomass than nitrogen-fertilized plants when they were exposed to salinity and cadmium together. To assess the mechanisms involved in the plant response to the combined stresses, superoxide dismutase and catalase antioxidant enzymatic activities were determined. Both increased upon stress; however, the increase in catalase activity was significantly less marked for inoculated plants, suggesting that other tolerance mechanisms might be active. Cd accumulation was lower in inoculated plants than in fertilized plants, which appears to imply that inoculation somehow prevented cadmium uptake by the plant roots. Expression analyses of several involved genes suggested that inoculation stimulated the biosynthesis of proline, phytochelatins, and homophytochelatins, together indicating that inoculated plants might be better suited to withstand combined salinity and cadmium stress effects. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Metals in Plant Metabolism and Physiology)

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Open AccessArticle

Metabolic and Oxidative Changes in the Fern Adiantum raddianum upon Foliar Application of Metals

by Jozef Kováčik, Lenka Husáková, Petr Babula and Ildikó Matušíková

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(23), 14736; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms232314736 - 25 Nov 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1521

Abstract

Cadmium (Cd) or nickel (Ni) were applied as a foliar spray (1 µM solution over one month) to mimic air pollution and to monitor metabolic responses and oxidative stress in the pteridophyte species. Exogenous metals did not affect the metal content of the [...] Read more.

Cadmium (Cd) or nickel (Ni) were applied as a foliar spray (1 µM solution over one month) to mimic air pollution and to monitor metabolic responses and oxidative stress in the pteridophyte species. Exogenous metals did not affect the metal content of the soil and had relatively little effect on the essential elements in leaves or rhizomes. The amounts of Cd and Ni were similar in treated leaves (7.2 µg Cd or 5.3 µg Ni/g DW in mature leaves compared with 0.4 µg Cd or 1.2 µg Ni/g DW in the respective control leaves), but Ni was more abundant in rhizomes (56.6 µg Ni or 3.4 µg Cd/g DW), resulting in a higher Cd translocation and bioaccumulation factor. The theoretical calculation revealed that ca. 4% of Cd and 5.5% of Ni from the applied solution per plant/pot was absorbed. Excess Cd induced stronger ROS production followed by changes in SOD and CAT activities, whereas nitric oxide (NO) stimulation was less intense, as detected by confocal microscopy. The hadrocentric vascular bundles in the petioles also showed higher ROS and NO signals under metal excess. This may be a sign of increased ROS formation, and high correlations were observed. Proteins and amino acids were stimulated by Cd or Ni application in individual organs, whereas phenols and flavonols were almost unaffected. The data suggest that even low levels of exogenous metals induce an oxidative imbalance, although no visible damage is observed, and that the responses of ferns to metals are similar to those of seed plants or algae. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Metals in Plant Metabolism and Physiology)

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