Session: General Poster:

One of agriculture’s major problem is the large of accumulation of arsenic (As) found in the groundwater used for irrigation. Arsenic pollution originates from the natural occurring high concentrations of arsenic in the deeper levels of groundwater. The accumulation of arsenic contamination in food plants is of major concern since Arsenic has the potential to be extremely toxic even at low concentration. In our research, we have measured the absorption of As by geminating lettuce seeds, through hydroponic means, with arsenic (III) and arsenic (V) contamination over a two-week growth period, and then determined the level absorption of the heavy metal in the leaves, roots and stems of the plant. The experimental design involved the following steps: Once the seedlings had been germinated, the sprouts were then placed into a Hoagland solution, a nutrient solution highly capable of providing every necessary nutrient for promoting plant growth. Along with the Hoagland solution, the plants were contaminated with 1, 2, 5 ppm of As (III) and As (V) each. Samples of the leaves, roots, and stems were freeze-dried, followed by acid and peroxide digestion for As analysis by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES). Our data indicates that the higher concentrations of As were detected in both the roots and leaves of the plant and the growth of the plants was stunted when the medium contain high concentrations of As.

Romain Lettuce through Hydroponic means.

Romain Lettuce through Hydroponic means.

Helia Morales

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