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Rosas-Moreno J, Walker C, Duffy K, Krüger C, Krüger M, Robinson CH, Pittman JK. Isolation and identification of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi from an abandoned uranium mine and their role in soil-to-plant transfer of radionuclides and metals. Sci Total Environ 2023; 876:162781. [PMID: 36906011 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162781] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2023] [Revised: 03/06/2023] [Accepted: 03/06/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi were recovered from soil samples from the naturally radioactive soil at the long-abandoned South Terras uranium mine in Cornwall, UK. Species of Rhizophagus, Claroideoglomus, Paraglomus, Septoglomus, and Ambispora were recovered, and pot cultures from all except Ambispora were established. Cultures were identified to species level using morphological observation and rRNA gene sequencing combined with phylogenetic analysis. These cultures were used in pot experiments designed with a compartmentalised system to assess the contribution of fungal hyphae to the accumulation of essential elements, such as copper and zinc, and non-essential elements, such as lead, arsenic, thorium, and uranium into root and shoot tissues of Plantago lanceolata. The results indicated that none of the treatments had any positive or negative impact on shoot and root biomass. However, Rhizophagus irregularis treatments showed higher accumulation of copper and zinc in shoots, while R. irregularis and Septoglomus constrictum enhanced arsenic accumulation in roots. Moreover, R. irregularis increased uranium concentration in roots and shoots of the P. lanceolata plant. This study provides useful insight into fungal-plant interactions that determine metal and radionuclide transfer from soil into the biosphere at contaminated sites such as mine workings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeanette Rosas-Moreno
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, School of Natural Sciences, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
| | - Christopher Walker
- School of Agriculture and Environment, University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia; Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, 21A Inverleith Row, Edinburgh EH3 5LR, UK
| | - Katie Duffy
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, School of Natural Sciences, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
| | - Claudia Krüger
- Plant Reproduction Laboratory, Institute of Experimental Botany, Czech Academy of Sciences, Rozvojová 263, 16502 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Manuela Krüger
- Plant Reproduction Laboratory, Institute of Experimental Botany, Czech Academy of Sciences, Rozvojová 263, 16502 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Clare H Robinson
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, School of Natural Sciences, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
| | - Jon K Pittman
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, School of Natural Sciences, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, UK.
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Davies HS, Rosas-Moreno J, Cox F, Lythgoe P, Bewsher A, Livens FR, Robinson CH, Pittman JK. Multiple environmental factors influence 238U, 232Th and 226Ra bioaccumulation in arbuscular mycorrhizal-associated plants. Sci Total Environ 2018; 640-641:921-934. [PMID: 30021326 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.05.370] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2018] [Revised: 05/16/2018] [Accepted: 05/29/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Ecological consequences of low-dose radioactivity from natural sources or radioactive waste are important to understand but knowledge gaps still remain. In particular, the soil transfer and bioaccumulation of radionuclides into plant roots is poorly studied. Furthermore, better knowledge of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi association may help understand the complexities of radionuclide bioaccumulation within the rhizosphere. Plant bioaccumulation of uranium, thorium and radium was demonstrated at two field sites, where plant tissue concentrations reached up to 46.93 μg g-1 238U, 0.67 μg g-1 232Th and 18.27 kBq kg-1 226Ra. High root retention of uranium was consistent in all plant species studied. In contrast, most plants showed greater bioaccumulation of thorium and radium into above-ground tissues. The influence of specific soil parameters on root radionuclide bioaccumulation was examined. Total organic carbon significantly explained the variation in root uranium concentration, while other soil factors including copper concentration, magnesium concentration and pH significantly correlated with root concentrations of uranium, radium and thorium, respectively. All four orders of Glomeromycota were associated with root samples from both sites and all plant species studied showed varying association with AM fungi, ranging from zero to >60% root colonisation by fungal arbuscules. Previous laboratory studies using single plant-fungal species association had found a positive role of AM fungi in root uranium transfer, but no significant correlation between the amount of fungal infection and root uranium content in the field samples was found here. However, there was a significant negative correlation between AM fungal infection and radium accumulation. This study is the first to examine the role of AM fungi in radionuclide soil-plant transfer at a community level within the natural environment. We conclude that biotic factors alongside various abiotic factors influence the soil-plant transfer of radionuclides and future mechanistic studies are needed to explain these interactions in more detail.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helena S Davies
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
| | - Jeanette Rosas-Moreno
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
| | - Filipa Cox
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
| | - Paul Lythgoe
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
| | - Alastair Bewsher
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
| | - Francis R Livens
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, UK; Centre for Radiochemistry Research, School of Chemistry, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
| | - Clare H Robinson
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, UK.
| | - Jon K Pittman
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, UK.
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