Overview
This germination-tray study characterized the morpho-physiological and biochemical response of mustard (Brassica juncea) seedlings to cadmium exposure. It is upstream mechanism evidence on cadmium uptake and tolerance in a Brassica crop; it reports no retail food occurrence and is context-only for Heavy Metal Index purposes.
Key numbers
- Cadmium applied at 0, 0.1, 0.5, and 1.0 mM; parameters measured in seven-day-old seedlings.
- Cadmium accumulated more in roots than in shoots and significantly impaired growth.
- Cadmium reduced chlorophyll biosynthesis and carotenoid content (depressing photosynthesis) and affected protein content; antioxidant catalase activity rose with increasing Cd.
- Effects were strongest at 1.0 mM Cd. The paper notes (introduction) that B. juncea can accumulate up to 400 µg/g DW Cd in shoots, citing its use as a phytoremediation model.
Methods (brief)
Germinating-tray experiment using CdCl₂ as the Cd source, tap water as control, with morphological (root/shoot length, biomass, vigour index) and biochemical (chlorophyll, carotenoid, protein, catalase) endpoints.
Implications
Certification: Contributes nothing to HMT&C threshold pools. Mechanism evidence on cadmium uptake/tolerance physiology in a Brassica crop; route as exposure/mechanism context to Soil-to-plant transfer of heavy metals, Cadmium, and Agronomic mitigation.
Courses: Illustrates root-vs-shoot cadmium partitioning and the oxidative-stress response relevant to cultivar-tolerance discussions.
App: No contamination_profile blocks are touched.
Microbiome: Not a focus of this source.
Update history
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