Plant Responses to Heavy Metal

A special issue of Toxics (ISSN 2305-6304).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 November 2025 | Viewed by 893

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
College of Resources and Environment, Yunnan Agricultural University, Kunming 650201, China
Interests: heavy metals; environmental ecology; soil pollution; risk assessment; phytoremediation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The effects of heavy metal stress on plant growth are mainly manifested in cellular structure alterations and changes in the uptake and translocation of other elements. Heavy metal ions in plants are absorbed into a plant by the roots and accumulate in different parts of the plant through metabolism, complexation, transportation and distribution. After heavy metals are absorbed by plants, selective distribution is shown in various cells, tissues and organs of the plants to alleviate the toxic effects of heavy metals. Plant responses to heavy metals include behavior, physiology and molecular mechanisms., and there are many regulations and control measurements which may vary these responses. Ecological restoration of soil includes physical, chemical, biological and phytoremediation technologies. Phytoremediation, in particular, is cheaper and ecologically friendlier based on the unique response of hyperaccumulators to heavy metal. This Special Issue is focused on the mechanism of plant responses to heavy metals and regulation measurements, including hyperaccumulators.

Prof. Dr. Yanqun Zu
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • heavy metals
  • plant
  • soil pollution
  • phytoremediation
  • mechanism
  • regulation and control

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 1208 KB  
Article
Phytohormone-ROS Crosstalk Regulates Metal Transporter Expression in Sedum alfredii
by Shimiao Chen, Bin Shan, Yanyan Li, Fuhai Zheng, Xi Chen, Lilan Lv and Qinyu Lu
Toxics 2025, 13(10), 823; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics13100823 (registering DOI) - 26 Sep 2025
Abstract
Sedum alfredii is a cadmium (Cd) hyperaccumulator, but the regulatory mechanisms linking phytohormones and redox balance to Cd transporter expression remain unclear. In this study, we omitted external cadmium (Cd) stress to isolate and examine the interplay between phytohormone and reactive oxygen species [...] Read more.
Sedum alfredii is a cadmium (Cd) hyperaccumulator, but the regulatory mechanisms linking phytohormones and redox balance to Cd transporter expression remain unclear. In this study, we omitted external cadmium (Cd) stress to isolate and examine the interplay between phytohormone and reactive oxygen species (ROS) signaling. Exogenous treatments with abscisic acid (ABA), indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), gibberellic acid (GA3), trans-zeatin (t-Z), and H2O2 were combined with analyses of hormone levels, antioxidant enzyme activities, and transporter gene expression. Correlation and PLS-SEM analyses identified the CAT–H2O2 module as a key node: ABA and IAA enhanced CAT activity and alleviated ROS-mediated repression of transporters, while GA3 and t-Z exerted opposite effects. Functional validation using an H2O2 scavenger revealed that the regulation of HMA3 and Nramp5 by ABA and t-Z is H2O2-dependent. In contrast, IAA modulates Nramp5 through a ROS-independent pathway, while the regulatory effects of GA3 were negligible. Functional validation under Cd exposure suggests a model wherein HMA3 and Nramp5 act in a complementary manner to sequester and redistribute Cd in leaves, thereby supporting hyperaccumulation. These findings highlight hormone-specific ROS pathways as central to transporter regulation and provide mechanistic insights to improve phytoremediation efficiency. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Responses to Heavy Metal)
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25 pages, 4979 KB  
Article
Single Super Phosphate Improves Lolium perenne Quality and Rhizosphere Microorganism Structure Under Combined Cadmium and Arsenic Stress
by Toe Toe Maw, Jiangdi Deng, Bo Li, Yanqun Zu and Zuran Li
Toxics 2025, 13(9), 805; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics13090805 - 22 Sep 2025
Viewed by 281
Abstract
Cadmium and arsenic co-contamination found in mining actions indicates major effluence in adjacent farmland soils, disturbing the plant physiology and soil’s microbial community. Phosphorus (P) plays a vital role in reducing soil contamination from Cd and As bioavailability and uptake by plants. However, [...] Read more.
Cadmium and arsenic co-contamination found in mining actions indicates major effluence in adjacent farmland soils, disturbing the plant physiology and soil’s microbial community. Phosphorus (P) plays a vital role in reducing soil contamination from Cd and As bioavailability and uptake by plants. However, the right P sources for remediation approaches are critical and still require further research in Cd- and As-contaminated soil. This study aimed to explore the effects of different phosphorus fertilizer sources on Lolium perenne growth and its physiological and rhizosphere microbial diversity under combined contamination with Cd and As. Pot experiments were performed with seven treatments including SSP (single super phosphate), DAP (diammonium phosphate), MAP (monoammonium phosphate), CaP (calcium phosphate), HighCaP (high calcium phosphate), RP (rock phosphate), and no phosphorus fertilizer application (CK) with five replications in the RCB design. The SSP treatment showed the greatest plant height (15.7 cm), hay yield (3567.6 kg·ha−1), and enhanced antioxidant defense activities. It also achieved the highest phosphorus accumulation rate (0.63 g·kg−1) with reduced Cd and As uptake. In addition, SSP promoted higher non-protein sulfhydryl (NPT) and phytochelatin synthetase (PCs) contents along with γ-glutamylcysteine synthetase (γ-ECS) activity, and enriched the rhizosphere microbial community, where the Sphingomonas abundance was 7.08% higher than for other treatments. Therefore, this result indicates that SSP can improve the yield and physiology in L. perenne, as well as soil the rhizosphere microbial community structure, while reducing Cd and As accumulation in plants under Cd and As stress. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Responses to Heavy Metal)
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