Effects of Toxic Metals Cd, Ni and Pb on Matricaria Chamomilla L. Growth in a Laboratory Study

Abstract

The paper presents a comparative bioaccumulation study between the growth of chamomile (Matricaria Chamomilla L.) exposed to toxic metals (Cd, Ni and Pb) and the growth of same plant species unexposed to metals. The soil was contaminated within three independent experiments with Cd, Ni and Pb at the intervention threshold value for sensitive use. Each of the toxic metal was added by watering the seeds, and subsequently the germinated plants. The experiments targeted the effects of soil pollution on the growth of chamomile during three months period. The results showed that in the first month of the study, all three metals accumulated in plants. After the seeds germination and plant growth, high Cd concentration in chamomile plants was detected. Moreover, Ni and Pb were detected in soil in the percentage of 96%. Overall, it was observed that chamomile plants were Cd accumulators at the tested concentrations of 6 mg/kg with no phytotoxic effects. Matricaria Chamomilla L. could be used in phytoremediation of polluted soils, with limitations of use for human consumption, except for the extracts.

The effect of toxic metal As on the Matricaria Chamomilla L. medicinal plant

“…Chamomile seeds (Matricaria Chamomilla L., AGROSEL producer) and universal plant substrate (Agro CS producer), enriched with nutrients N and P [5], were used.…”

“…Contamination of soil, water and air with toxic metals as a result of anthropogenic activities, such as industrialization, urbanization, traffic, mining and agricultural activities is a threat to the environment [1][2][3]. In the context of ecosystem pollution, toxic metals require special attention, as they can generate hazards and risks to human health [1][2][3][4][5][6]. The level of contamination of air, water and soil with metal ions is a very important problem for human health, because on populations exposed to them in the long term can generate carcinogenic, mutagenic effects, etc., causing various diseases.…”

“…Depending on how the plant reacts to the contaminant, there are three phytoremediation techniques, namely by phytoextraction, phytostabilization and phytovolatilization. Depending on the plant's response to metals, plants are classified into three types: exclusion plants, bioindicator plants and accumulating or hyper-accumulating plants that can take over or store significant amounts of metals in their underground and aerial parts, being used extensively in remedying contaminated soils [5,7,8,[18][19][20][21][22][23]. Phytoremediation represent the ability of plants to absorb metals from the soil through the roots and transport them to the aerial parts of the plant.…”

“…TF is given by the ratio between the metal concentration in the aerial components (stem, leaf or inflorescence) and the metal concentration in the root. Both indices indicate bioaccumulation, respectively translocation when the values are greater than 1 [5,8,13,[18][19][20]23]. The consumption of herbal medicines is used more and more global, conducting numerous studies on the quality and safety of medicinal plants, so the WHO has imposed the determination of toxic metals in plant species used for medicinal, aromatic and food use [24][25][26].…”

Behavior of Cd Accumulation in Sinapis alba L. in the Presence of Essential Elements (Ca, Mg, Fe, Zn, Mn, Cu, Ni)

“…The watering tap water (Table 2), as well as the soil used to grow mustard seeds (Table 3), did not presented an initial Cd content. The soil used in the in translocation and bioaccumulation experimental tests, the same as the one used in our similar design study, but made for the chamomile plant [21], has a pH around 6.4, with a Ctotal/Ntotal ratio of 17.52, indicating moderate mobility of nitrogen transfer to the plant. The metal concentration in substrate indicated normal values [20].…”