Lead Toxicity: Health Hazards, Influence on Food Chain, and Sustainable Remediation Approaches.

Amit Kumar,Amit Kumar,Gangavarapu Subrahmanyam,Cabral-Pinto M.M.S,Aftab A Shabnam,Smita S Kumar,Ashish K Chaturvedi,Shakeel A Khan,Raju Mondal,Krishna K Yadav,Sandeep K Malyan,Dipak Kumar Gupta

doi:10.3390/ijerph17072179

Abstract

Lead (Pb) toxicity has been a subject of interest for environmental scientists due to its toxic effect on plants, animals, and humans. An increase in several Pb related industrial activities and use of Pb containing products such as agrochemicals, oil and paint, mining, etc. can lead to Pb contamination in the environment and thereby, can enter the food chain. Being one of the most toxic heavy metals, Pb ingestion via the food chain has proven to be a potential health hazard for plants and humans. The current review aims to summarize the research updates on Pb toxicity and its effects on plants, soil, and human health. Relevant literature from the past 20 years encompassing comprehensive details on Pb toxicity has been considered with key issues such as i) Pb bioavailability in soil, ii) Pb biomagnification, and iii) Pb- remediation, which has been addressed in detail through physical, chemical, and biological lenses. In the review, among different Pb-remediation approaches, we have highlighted certain advanced approaches such as microbial assisted phytoremediation which could possibly minimize the Pb load from the resources in a sustainable manner and would be a viable option to ensure a safe food production system.

Highlights

Lead (Pb) is a highly noxious, non-disintegrative heavy metal with a bluish-gray color, an atomic number of 82, molecular weight 207.2, density 11.34 g/cm3, and a melting point of 621.43 ◦ F
Bio-concentration factor (BCF) for Pb = 523, indicating that this plant is a moderate accumulator of Pb
Based on the tolerance mechanism, different concentrations of Pb accumulate in the food chain and cause different magnitudes of human health hazards

Summary

Introduction

Lead (Pb) is a highly noxious, non-disintegrative heavy metal with a bluish-gray color, an atomic number of 82, molecular weight 207.2, density 11.34 g/cm , and a melting point of 621.43 ◦ F. It can be shaped, molded, and used to form alloys through mixing with other metals. The inorganic Pb dominantly occurs in dust, soil, old paint, and other different user products, while organic Pb (Tetra-ethyl Pb) is predominantly found in leaded gasoline. Pb is the second most toxic metal after Arsenic (As), comprises 0.002% of Earth’s crust [2,3], and its natural level remains to be below 50 mg kg−1 [4]

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