Abstract
The continued accumulation of trace and heavy metals in the environment presents a significant danger to biota health, including humans, which is undoubtedly undermining global environmental sustainability initiatives. Consequently, the need for efficient remediation technologies becomes imperative. Phytoremediation is one of the most viable options in this regard. Hundreds of plants in laboratory experiments demonstrate the potential to remediate varying concentrations of heavy metals; however, the remediation capacity of most of these plants proved unsatisfactory under field conditions. The identification and selection of plants with higher metal uptake capacity or hyperaccumulators are one of the limitations of this technology. Additionally, the mechanism of heavy metal uptake by plants remains to be sufficiently documented. The halophyte plants are famous for their adaptation to harsh environmental conditions, and hence could be the most suitable candidates for heavy metal hyperaccumulation. The state of Qatar in the Gulf region encompasses rich resources of halophytes that have the potential for future investment toward human and environmental health. This chapter, therefore, gives an overview of phytoremediation, with emphasis on halophytes as suitable heavy metal hyperaccumulators for improved remediation of heavy metal-contaminated areas.
Highlights
Heavy metals and other organic compounds constitutes the major environmental contaminants, and the trials of phytoremediation to free pollutants from waste water and contaminated soil dates back to hundreds of years ago in plants such as the Thlaspi caerulescens and Viola calaminaria, which were reported to remediate high concentration of heavy metals [1]
While experimenting for phytoremediation under different water conditions polluted with heavy metals, Liao and Chang [39] found that Eichhonia crassipes absorb and accumulates metal contaminants, it has exhibit high growth rate and increased biomass production and considered a good phytofiltration agent
At high metal concentrations, increased proteins induction are involved in the defense against antioxidants and energy metabolism has been consistently observed; examples includes Renal Epithelial Protein (APX), Superoxide dismutase (SOD), cytochrome P450 and Glutathione S-transferase (GST)
Summary
Heavy metals and other organic compounds constitutes the major environmental contaminants, and the trials of phytoremediation to free pollutants from waste water and contaminated soil dates back to hundreds of years ago in plants such as the Thlaspi caerulescens and Viola calaminaria, which were reported to remediate high concentration of heavy metals [1]. Chemical processes create another pollution and are especially costly since they generate heaps of sludge [6] In view of this context, new and better approaches to clean up of metal contamination were thought up and became imperative, the exploration of various bio-based techniques. The accumulation of heavy metals in plant tissues results in a wide range of negative effects on growth It affects seed germination, growth of seedlings and photosynthetic processes, which generally leads to the inhibition of the plants important enzymatic activity [17, 18], plants responds differently [19]. Several studies reported many plants, including desert species as good phytoremediation agents, few are metal hyperaccumulators and their selection for efficient phytoremediation is still a challenge This is demonstrated by slow growth, above ground biomass, root system and harvest [22].
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