An investigation of arsenic contamination in Peninsular Malaysia based on Centella asiatica and soil samples

Abstract

The first objective of this study was to provide data of arsenic (As) levels in Peninsular Malaysia based on soil samples and accumulation of As in Centella asiatica collected from 12 sampling sites in Peninsular Malaysia. The second objective was to assess the accumulation of As in transplanted C. asiatica between control and semi-polluted or polluted sites. Four sites were selected which were UPM (clean site), Balakong (semi-polluted site), Seri Kembangan (semi-polluted site) and Juru (polluted site). The As concentrations of plant and soil samples were determined by Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis. The As levels ranged from 9.38 to 57.05 μg/g dw in soils, 0.21 to 4.33 μg/g dw in leaves, 0.18 to 1.83 μg/g dw in stems and 1.32-20.76 μg/g dw in roots. All sampling sites had As levels exceeding the CCME guideline (12 μg/g dw) except for Kelantan, P. Pauh, and Senawang with P. Klang having the highest As in soil (57.05 μg/g dw). In C. asiatica, As accumulation was highest in roots followed by leaves and stems. When the As level in soils were higher, the uptake of As in plants would also be increased. After the transplantation of plants to semi-polluted and polluted sites for 3 weeks, all concentration factors were greater than 50 % of the initial As level. The elimination factor was around 39 % when the plants were transplanted back to the clean sites for 3 weeks. The findings of the present study indicated that the leaves, stems and roots of C. asiatica are ideal biomonitors of As contamination. The present data results the most comprehensive data obtained on As levels in Malaysia.

Accumulation of arsenic and antimony in Aloe barbadensis: A transplantation study

“…In addition, the concentration ranges of As in this study were in agreement with those reported by Ong et al. () (9.38 to 57.05 μg/g), where researchers had collected soil samples from 12 sampling stations in Peninsular Malaysia.…”

“…In Malaysia, metals contamination is affecting the quality of the plants with medicinal attributes (Ong, Wong, Tan, & Yap, ; Ong, Yap, Maziah, Suhaimi, & Tan, ), which warrants the need of heavy metals monitoring in the medicinal plants grown in the country. The main objective of this study was to determine the uptake of two metals–As and Sb–by A. barbadensis based on common metal contamination indices, enrichment factor (EF), index of geoaccumulation (Igeo), bioconcentration factor (BCF), and translocation factor (TF), by transplantation of the plants in soils of two selected sites in Peninsular Malaysia.…”

Comparative Study between Imprinted Polymer Technology and Economic Adsorption Methodologies for the Removal of Arsenic Species from Water

“…Both data shows a remain high total concentration of arsenic allowed in water resources. According to Ong et al, none of the local vegetable samples showed levels greater than 2.00 μg/g of arsenic in Malaysia [10]. The arsenic contamination in Malaysia did not reach the level of concern to the public at that time.…”

Organic Arsenical Exposure Stimulates Atherosclerosis Through Oxidative Stress Increase and Adhesion Molecule Expression

“…However, studies focusing on the adverse effects of organic arsenic are limited (Kato et al, 2010;Hammid et al, 2013;Ong et al, 2013). PON1 is a lactonase cardio-protective enzyme that hydrolyses ox-LDL and prevents oxidation of LDL (Aviram et al, 1998;Hao et al, 2013).…”