Arsenic uptake, accumulation and toxicity in rice plants: Possible remedies for its detoxification: A review

Abstract

Arsenic (As) is a toxic metalloid. Serious concerns have been raised in literature owing to its potential toxicity towards living beings. The metalloid causes various water- and food-borne diseases. Among food crops, rice contains the highest concentrations of As. Consuming As-contaminated rice results in serious health issues. Arsenic concentration in rice is governed by various factors in the rhizosphere such as availability and concentration of various mineral nutrients (iron, phosphate, sulfur and silicon) in soil solution, soil oxidation/reduction status, inter-conversion between organic and inorganic As compounds. Agronomic and civil engineering methods can be adopted to decrease As accumulation in rice. Agronomic methods such as improving soil porosity/aeration by irrigation management or creating the conditions favorable for As-precipitate formation, and decreasing As uptake and translocation by adding a inorganic nutrients that compete with As are easy and cost effective techniques at field scale. This review focuses on the factors regulating and competing As in soil-plant system and As accumulation in rice grains. Therefore, it is suggested that judicious use of water, management of soil, antagonistic effects of various inorganic plant-nutrients to As should be considered in rice cultivated areas to mitigate the building up of As in human food chain and with minimum negative impact to the environment.

Arsenic Accumulation in Rice and Probable Mitigation Approaches: A Review

“…The findings help in hypothesizing that both the genotypes and environmental factors play very important roles to control arsenic accumulation in rice grains [65]. The major factors that influence the arsenic accumulation in rice grain include the type of the rice cultivar, plant physiology, the place where the plant was cultivated, and the method of processing of rice [10]. It was found that concentration of arsenic in brown rice was higher than white rice [10].…”

“…The major factors that influence the arsenic accumulation in rice grain include the type of the rice cultivar, plant physiology, the place where the plant was cultivated, and the method of processing of rice [10]. It was found that concentration of arsenic in brown rice was higher than white rice [10].…”

“…There are effective remedies present that may help to decrease the risk associated with arsenic in plants [10].…”

“…Supplementation of soil with specific mineral nutrients like Fe, S, P, and Si can significantly decrease the arsenic accumulation in edible plant parts by minimizing its uptake and translocation in food crops [10].…”

“…Extensive research in plant physiology has uncovered the response of plants in arsenic-stress. Alteration of plant growth conditions through water management practices and supplementation of other mineral nutrient such as phosphorus (P), silicon (Si), iron (Fe), and sulfur (S) in soil, to reduce the solubility and availability to plants by changing the exchangeable fraction of arsenic [10,36]. In this review article, an attempt has been made to summarize the data related to arsenic bioavailability to rice from soil, its uptake, accumulation, and oxidative stress in rice and possible cost effective agronomic strategies to reduce arsenic contamination in rice.…”