The contamination of soils and water with metals has created a major environmental problem, leading to considerable losses in plant productivity and hazardous health effects. Exposure to toxic metals can intensify the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which are continuously produced in both unstressed and stressed plants cells. Some of the ROS species are highly toxic and must be detoxified by cellular stress responses, if the plant is to survive and grow. The aim of this review is to assess the mode of action and role of antioxidants in protecting plants from stress caused by the presence of heavy metals in the environment.

The effects of varying concentrations of cadmium (Cd) on the development of Lycopersicon esculentum cv. Micro-Tom (MT) plants were investigated after 40 days (vegetative growth) and 95 days (fruit production), corresponding to 20 days and 75 days of exposure to CdCl 2 , respectively. Inhibition of growth was clearly observed in the leaves after 20 days and was greater after 75 days of growth in 1 mM CdCl 2 , whereas the fruits exhibited reduced growth following the exposure to a concentration as low as 0.1 mM CdCl 2 . Cd was shown to accumulate in the roots after 75 days of growth but was mainly translocated to the upper parts of the plants accumulating to high concentrations in the fruits. Lipid peroxidation was more pronounced in the roots even at 0.05 mM CdCl 2 after 75 days, whereas in leaves, there was a major increase after 20 days of exposure to 1 mM CdCl 2 , but the fruit only exhibited a slight significant increase in lipid peroxidation in plants subjected to 1 mM CdCl 2 when compared with the control. Oxidative stress was also investigated by the analysis of four key antioxidant enzymes, which exhibited changes in response to the increasing concentrations of Cd tested. Catalase (EC 1.11.1.6) activity was shown to increase after 75 days of Cd treatment, but the major increases were observed at 0.1 and 0.2 mM CdCl 2 , whereas guaiacol peroxidase (EC 1.11.1.7) did not vary significantly from the control in leaves and roots apart from specific changes at 0.5 and 1 mM CdCl 2 . The other two enzymes tested, glutathione reductase (EC 1.6.4.2) and superoxide dismutase (SOD, EC 1.15.1.1), did not exhibit any significant changes in activity, apart from a slight decrease in SOD activity at concentrations above 0.2 mM CdCl 2 . However, the most striking results were obtained when an extra treatment was used in which a set of plants was subjected to a stepwise increase in CdCl 2 from 0.05 to 1 mM, leading to tolerance of the Cd applied even at the final highest concentration of 1 mM. This apparent adaptation to the toxic effect of Cd was confirmed by biomass values being similar to the control, indicating a tolerance to Cd acquired by the MT plants.

Sulfur management is an important issue in crop plant nutrition. Sulfur has a role in fundamental processes such as electron transport, structure and regulation. It is also associated with photosynthetic oxygen production, abiotic and biotic stress resistance and secondary metabolism. Sulfate uptake, reductive assimilation and integration into cysteine and methionine are the central processes that direct oxidized and reduced forms of organically bound S into their various functions. Sulfur-containing defense compounds that are crucial for plant survival during biotic and abiotic stress include elemental sulfur, hydrogen sulfide, glutathione, phytochelatins, S-rich proteins and various secondary metabolites. Formation of these compounds in plants is closely related to the supply, demand, uptake and assimilation of S. This review will highlight the role of S during the stress response in plants and the relationship between S metabolism and primary S nutrition.

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