Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 8, 2026

A Method to Preserve Wetland Roots and Rhizospheres for Elemental Imaging
Published on: February 15, 2021
Free space iron pools in roots: generation and mobilization
H F Bienfait1, W van den Briel, N T Mesland-Mul
1Department of Plant Physiology, University of Amsterdam, Kruislaan 318, 1098 SM Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
A new method quantifies ferric iron in plant roots. Iron availability and plant needs influence this iron pool, which plants can mobilize when deficient.
Area of Science:
- Plant Physiology
- Biochemistry
- Soil Science
Background:
- Iron is essential for plant growth, but its availability in soil can be limited.
- Understanding iron uptake and storage mechanisms is crucial for improving crop nutrition.
- The ferric iron pool in the root free space plays a role in iron acquisition.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a rapid and simple method for determining the ferric iron pool in the root free space.
- To investigate the factors influencing the formation of this ferric iron pool.
- To assess the mobilization of this pool under iron deficiency.
Main Methods:
- Developed a method to quantify ferric iron in the root free space.
- Grew bean, maize, and chlorophytum plants in nutrient solutions with different iron sources (Fe-EDTA, ferrioxamine).
- Induced iron deficiency to observe pool mobilization.
Main Results:
- A significant ferric iron pool (500-1000 nmol Fe/g FW) formed with Fe-EDTA, but not with ferrioxamine.
- Bean and chlorophytum mobilized this pool upon impending iron deficiency.
- Iron-deficient bean plants could mobilize iron from another plant's root free space pool.
Conclusions:
- The ferric iron pool in the root free space is dependent on the iron source in the nutrient solution.
- Plants can mobilize this pool to meet iron requirements during deficiency.
- Inter-plant iron transfer via the root free space pool is possible.
More Related Videos
12:03Two-Dimensional Visualization and Quantification of Labile, Inorganic Plant Nutrients and Contaminants in Soil
Published on: September 1, 2020
09:45Laboratory Simulation of an Iron(II)-rich Precambrian Marine Upwelling System to Explore the Growth of Photosynthetic Bacteria
Published on: July 24, 2016
Related Concept Videos
Microbes and Other Elemental Cycles
Water and Mineral Acquisition
Short-distance Transport of Resources
Xylem and Transpiration-driven Transport of Resources
Primary and Secondary Growth in Roots and Shoots
Acid Mine Drainage