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Updated: May 1, 2026

Hydroponics: A Versatile System to Study Nutrient Allocation and Plant Responses to Nutrient Availability and Exposure to Toxic Elements
Published on: July 13, 2016
Response of the pea roots defense systems to the two-element combinations of metals (Cu, Zn, Cd, Pb)
Arleta Malecka1, Aneta Piechalak1, Barbara Zielińska1
1Department of Biochemistry, Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Collegium Biologicum, Poznań, Poland.
Abstract:
The presence of the single metals (Cd, Pb, Cu, Zn) induces ROS (reactive oxygen species) production and causes oxidative stress in plants. While applied in two-element combinations, trace metals impact organisms in a more complex way. To assess the resultant effect we treated the pea grown hydroponically with the trace metals in variants: CuPb, CuCd, CuZn, PbCd, ZnPb, ZnCd in concentrations of 25 µM for each metal ion. Abiotic stress inhibited root elongation growth, decreased biomass production, induced changes in root colour and morphology. It changed rate of ROS production, malondialdehyde content, increased activity and altered gene expression of defence enzymes (superoxide dysmutase, catalase, ascorbate peroxidase, glutathione reductase, γ-glutamylcysteine synthetase).
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