Perfluorooctanesulfonate
(PFOS) is a toxic and persistent organic
pollutant that can be widely detected in agricultural soils. In this
study, two lettuce cultivars with low PFOS accumulation were screened
out to reduce the exposure of PFOS to the human body via vegetable
consumption. The screened low-PFOS cultivars may help to ensure food
safety, despite planting in highly PFOS-polluted soils (1.0 mg/kg),
due to their high tolerance to PFOS and 4.4–5.7 times lower
shoot PFOS concentration than the high-PFOS cultivars. Protein content
and protein-mediated transpiration played key roles in regulating
PFOS accumulation in the lettuce cultivars tested. Lower protein content,
lower stomatal conductance, and lower transpiration rate resulted
in low PFOS accumulation. This study reveals the mechanism of forming
low-PFOS accumulation of lettuce cultivars at physiological and biochemical
levels and lays a foundation for developing a cost-effective and safe
approach to grow vegetables in PFOS-polluted soils.
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