Role of ZnCl₂ in the Uptake and Translocation of Cd to Different Parts of Wheat Plant and Risk Assessments for Cow and Human

ABSTRACT

In this study, we assessed the effect of zinc (Zn) when present in form of zinc chloride (ZnCl₂) on translocation and accumulation of cadmium (Cd) in different parts of wheat plants (Triticum aestivum). Along with that, health risks to organisms of higher trophic levels (cows and humans) that consume these polluted wheat plants were also calculated. For the experiments, the soil was spiked with CdCl₂ at rate of 3, 6, 12, 24, and 48 mg Cd kg⁻¹ soil and ZnCl₂ at a rate of 50, 100, 200, and 300 mg Zn kg⁻¹ soil. In the combination treatment, all Cd concentrations used in single exposure were mixed in the soil that spiked with 200 mg kg⁻¹ of Zn. According to the data, concentration of Zn and Cd in all parts of wheat plants increase with the increase of their concentration in the soil. However, soil application of Zn reduced Cd concentration in all parts of wheat plants (approximately two-fold in root and shoot, and more than 13-fold in the grains). The highest bioaccumulation of both metals was recorded in the roots and least in grains and leaves. The translocation factor also showed that roots store most of the metals and did not translocate them to the grains. The data showed that Zn application in the soil did not decrease ecological risk factor. However, daily intake metal (DIM) and health risk index (HRI) of cows showed that the Cd intake was higher than the permissible limit, but this quantity was not a health risk for cows. In humans, DIM values were higher than the permissible limit and caused severe health risk. However, a two-fold decrease in health risk of human due to Cd was recorded in the presence of Zn. This study revealed that ZnCl₂ can be used to suppress the Cd uptake in wheat even at high pollution levels. It may decrease the risk of toxicity to higher tropic levels that consume different parts of wheat plants. In future further investigation about the role of ZnCl₂ in the mitigation of other metals phytotoxicity is required to use it in agroecosystem.

KEYWORDS:

• Cadmium
• DIM
• HRI
• Triticum aestivum
• Zinc

Data Availability

This Data is a part of a project and Ph.D. thesis of Muhammad Xaaceph Khan. Data will be deposited to public repository after the completion of Muhammad Xaaceph Khan Ph. D. degree.

Acknowledgments

We express our gratitude to the Institute of Zoology, University of the Punjab, Lahore for providing us space to building a greenhouse for this study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Contribution

All authors contributed to conception, design, and data collection of this study. The draft of the manuscript was written by Muhammad Xaaceph Khan while guided and edited by Dr. Abida Butt. All authors read and approved the manuscript for submission.

Ethics Approval

Ethics approval is not applicable on this study as neither animal nor human’s subjects are involved in the study.

Consent to Participate

Both authors duly participated in this study.

Consent to Publish

Both authors read and approve the manuscript to be published in this journal.

Additional information

Funding

This study was sponsored by Higher Education Commission Pakistan (HEC) through NRPU project No. 4495;Higher education commission, Pakistan [NRPU4495];