Effects of Zinc and Chromium Stresses on Quality of Rice Grain

Abstract

To reveal the impact of zinc and chromium stresses on the quality of rice grain, a set of experiments were conducted where the quality of rice grain was studied across different concentrations of zinc and chromium in the soil. The results revealed many dependencies. For example, the changes in milling quality and the shape of rice grain were minimal. However, increasing concentrations of zinc and chromium in the soil both produced higher rates of chalky rice. Amylose content was found to increase at lower concentrations of zinc in the soil, yet higher concentrations of chromium also produced higher amylose content. The content of crude protein in rice grain showed an increasing trend with increasing concentrations of either zinc or chromium. Finally, a positive correlation was found between the concentration of zinc in the soil and the concentrations of both zinc and chromium in the rice grain. Whereas increasing concentrations of chromium in the soil yielded higher chromium content in the rice, but had no measurable impact on zinc content.