Abstract
Environmental problems have always received immense attention from scientists. Toxicants pollution is a critical environmental concern that has posed serious threats to human health and agricultural production. Heavy metals and pesticides are top of the list of environmental toxicants endangering nature. This review focuses on the toxic effect of heavy metals (cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), copper (Cu), and zinc (Zn)) and pesticides (insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides) adversely influencing the agricultural ecosystem (plant and soil) and human health. Furthermore, heavy metals accumulation and pesticide residues in soils and plants have been discussed in detail. In addition, the characteristics of contaminated soil and plant physiological parameters have been reviewed. Moreover, human diseases caused by exposure to heavy metals and pesticides were also reported. The bioaccumulation, mechanism of action, and transmission pathways of both heavy metals and pesticides are emphasized. In addition, the bioavailability in soil and plant uptake of these contaminants has also been considered. Meanwhile, the synergistic and antagonistic interactions between heavy metals and pesticides and their combined toxic effects have been discussed. Previous relevant studies are included to cover all aspects of this review. The information in this review provides deep insights into the understanding of environmental toxicants and their hazardous effects.
Highlights
Due to enormous economic development and rapid growth in many fields, such as agriculture and industry, the environment is becoming more polluted [1]
The results showed that human health risk reports for heavy metals suggested that absorption was the primary route of exposure that has harmful effects on human health
The novelty of this study is to provide an integrated synthesis of knowledge on the complete pathway of both heavy metals and pesticides starts from their various sources, accumulation in soil and plant, and reaching human beings
Summary
Due to enormous economic development and rapid growth in many fields, such as agriculture and industry, the environment is becoming more polluted [1]. The mechanisms of heavy metals transmission to plants include (i) phytoextraction (subprocess of phytoremediation in which plants eliminate hazardous components from contaminated soil), (ii) phytostabilization (immobilization and reduction of the mobility of heavy metals in soil), and (iii) rhizofiltration (a form of phytoremediation to use plant roots to absorb the toxic substances) These metals cause damage to plants, and extend to harm human health through transference in the food chain [9,10]. In light of the aforementioned ecological risks, this review covers the sources of heavy metals, the classification of pesticides, and the types of both toxicants It discusses the properties of agricultural soils that change due to the contamination of heavy. The synergistic and antagonistic interactions between heavy metals and pesticides, and their combined toxicity in soil, plants, and humans have been reported
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