Uptake and accumulation of di-n-butyl phthalate in six leafy vegetables under hydroponic conditions

Abstract

The uptake and accumulation of din -butyl phthalate (DBP) in six leafy vegetables was investigated under hydroponic conditions. The test vegetables were six varieties of Brassica campestris ssp., including Kangresijiqing (KRSJQ), Xiadiqing (XDQ), Ziyoucai (ZYC), Aijiaohuang (AJH), Shanghaiqing (SHQ) and Gaogengbai (GGB). The root concentration factor (RCF), translocation factor (TF) and transpiration stream concentration factor (TSCF) were calculated in order to compare the difference of uptake and accumulation behaviours of DBP in vegetable varieties. The results showed that DBP was easily concentrated in vegetable roots, but was poorly translocated from the roots to the shoots. Among the six vegetables, the ability of concentrating DBP from the solution to shoots was the highest in GGB, followed by ZYC, KRSJQ, AJH, SHQ and XDQ. High concentrations of DBP (5.0 mg/L) seem to inhibit normal physiological activity in the vegetables, which resulted in a higher RCF and a lower TF and TSCF than in low-concentration treatment. The results will help to evaluate the safety of agricultural products and to provide evidence for screening DBP pollution-safe vegetable cultivars.

Accumulation and Transport of Phthalic Acid Esters in the Soil-Plant System of Agricultural Fields with Different Years of Film Mulching

“…It has been reported that organic compounds with logKow values between −1 and 5 are considered mobile under transpiration-driven processes. Therefore, DEHP, with a higher logKow value, was more prone to accumulate in plant roots [28]. In this study, root concentration factor (RCF) values in maize under the mulching years of 0-20 were greater than the value of 1 (Table 2), indicating the accumulation of PAEs and their congeners in maize roots.…”

“…To compare the enrichment and translocation abilities of PAEs, the bioconcentration factor (BCF) and translocation factor (TF) were calculated. BAF includes the root concentration factor (RCF), stem concentration factor (SCF), leaf concentration factor (LCF), and grain concentration factor (GCF) [28]. RCF, SCF, and LCF indicate the ability of plants to absorb compounds from the soil in different organs and can be calculated as follows:…”

“…The translocation factor (TF) [28] was used to assess the ability of plants to transfer organic chemicals from the roots to other parts. It is defined as follows:…”

“…The contents of PAEs in soils and plants were reported from 465 to 5450 µg kg −1 dw (dry weight), and from 2440 to 21,800 µg kg −1 dw in Dalian, China, respectively, [26]. It is widely believed that plants can absorb and accumulate phthalates in agricultural soils [27][28][29].…”

Natural Does Not Mean Safe

“…Medicinal plants grown in contaminated areas are usually susceptible to concentrating PBT chemicals. Dioxin, dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), some indicator PCBs [42,43], metals [44][45][46], and phthalates [47][48][49], among others, are common environmental pollutants that can accumulate in plants in substantial and health-threatening quantities. Exposure to dioxins and dioxin-like substances has been associated with an avalanche of toxic effects during developmental stages, immunotoxicity, and adverse changes in thyroid and steroid hormones and also in reproductive functions [43].…”