Pedosphere 28(4): 680--689, 2018
ISSN 1002-0160/CN 32-1315/P
©2018 Soil Science Society of China
Published by Elsevier B.V. and Science Press
Effect of Silicon on Growth, Physiology, and Cadmium Translocation of Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) in Cadmium-Contaminated Soil
LU Yingang1, MA Jun2, TENG Ying3, HE Junyu1, Peter CHRISTIE3, ZHU Lingjia3, REN Wenjie3, ZHANG Manyun3, Shiping DENG4
1College of Agriculture, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025(China)
2College of Materials and Chemistry, Tongren University, Tongren 554300(China)
3Key Laboratory of Soil Environment and Pollution Remediation, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008(China)
4Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater OK 74078(USA)
Corresponding Author:LU Yingang
ABSTRACT
      Silicon (Si) offers beneficial effect on plants under cadmium (Cd) stress such as promoting plant growth and increasing resistance to heavy metal toxicity. In this study, a pot experiment was performed to study the role of Si in alleviating Cd toxicity in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) plants on a yellow soil taken from Guiyang, China. Nine treatments consisting of three concentrations of Cd (0, 1, and 5 mg kg-1) together with three Si levels (0, 1, and 4 g kg-1) were established. Plant growth parameters, Cd concentration, and the malondialdehyde (MDA), chlorophyll, and carotenoid contents were determined 100 d after transplanting of tobacco seedlings. Application of exogenous Si enhanced the growth of tobacco plants under Cd stress. When 5 mg kg-1 Cd was added, Si addition at 1 and 4 g kg-1 increased root, stem, and leaf biomass by 26.1%-43.3%, 33.7%-43.8%, and 50.8%-69.9%, respectively, compared to Si addition at 0 g kg-1. With Si application, the transfer factor of Cd in tobacco from root to shoot under both 1 and 5 mg kg-1 Cd treatments decreased by 21%. The MDA contents in the Si-treated tobacco plants declined by 5.5%-17.1% compared to those in the non-Si-treated plants, indicating a higher Cd tolerance. Silicon application also increased the chlorophyll and carotenoid contents by 33.9%-41% and 25.8%-47.3% compared to the Cd only treatments. Therefore, it could be concluded that Si application can alleviate Cd toxicity to tobacco by decreasing Cd partitioning in the shoots and MDA levels and by increasing chlorophyll and carotenoid contents, thereby contributing to lowering the potential health risks of Cd contamination.
Key Words:  cadmium stress,cadmium tolerance,cadmium toxicity,chlorophyll,heavy metal,plant growth parameter,potential health risk,transfer factor
Citation: Lu Y G, Ma J, Teng Y, He J Y, Christie P, Zhu L J, Ren W J, Zhang M Y, Deng S P. 2018. Effect of silicon on growth, physiology, and cadmium translocation of tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) in cadmium-contaminated soil. Pedosphere. 28(4): 680–689.
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