The effects of heavy metal exposure in agriculture soil on chlorophyll content of agriculture crops: A meta-analysis approach

Abstract Soil can be contaminated by the accumulation of heavy metals and metalloids through emissions from rapidly developing industrial areas. Due to the possibility of chemical change (speciation) and their bioavailability, the presence of toxic metals in the soil can greatly inhibit the biodegradation of organic contaminants. The researchers aimed to analyse the effect of heavy metal levels in agricultural soil on chlorophyll levels in agricultural crops through a meta-analysis method which is expected to provide results in the form of a summary of data that already exists in journals that have been published so far. Here we present a meta-analysis of 6 studies (56 data collected) published between 1997 and 2020 that reported the effects of heavy metal content on plant chlorophyll content. Based on the meta-analysis of the effect of heavy metal exposure in agricultural soil on the chlorophyll content of agricultural crops, the value “effect size overall” was -0.285 in the range of -0.380 to -0.190, where most of the values “effect size” were on the left. Plants growing on soil contaminated with heavy metals result in decreased growth due to changes in physiological and biochemical activities, especially when heavy metals inhibit plant growth and development. Furthermore, environmental risk assessment due to mercury exposure is very important to control the transport and accumulation of mercury in the biosphere to reduce the impact of mercury on the environment.

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Relationship between heavy metal exposure and type 2 diabetes: a large-scale retrospective cohort study using occupational health examinations

BMJ Open ◽

10.1136/bmjopen-2020-039541 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (3) ◽

pp. e039541

Author(s):

Jun Ho Ji ◽

Mi Hyeon Jin ◽

Jung-Hun Kang ◽

Soon Il Lee ◽

Suee Lee ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Heavy Metals ◽

Type 2 Diabetes ◽

Heavy Metal ◽

Cohort Study ◽

Retrospective Cohort ◽

Metal Exposure ◽

Heavy Metal Exposure ◽

Lead And Cadmium

ObjectivesTo investigate the associations between heavy metal exposure and serum ferritin levels, physical measurements and type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM).DesignA retrospective cohort study.SettingChangwon, the location of this study, is a Korean representative industrial city. Data were obtained from medical check-ups between 2002 and 2018.ParticipantsA total of 34 814 male subjects were included. Of them, 1035 subjects with lead exposure, 200 subjects with cadmium exposure and the 33 579 remaining were assigned to cohort A, cohort B and the control cohort, respectively. Data including personal history of alcohol and smoking, age, height, weight, the follow-up duration, haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), fasting blood sugar (FBS), ferritin levels, and lead and cadmium levels within 1 year after exposure were collected.Primary outcome measureIn subjects without diabetes, changes in FBS and HbA1c were analysed through repeated tests at intervals of 1 year or longer after the occupational exposure to heavy metals.ResultsIn Cohort A, DM was diagnosed in 33 subjects. There was a significant difference in lead concentrations between the subjects diagnosed with DM and those without DM during the follow-up period (3.94±2.92 mg/dL vs 2.81±2.03 mg/dL, p=0.002). Simple exposure to heavy metals (lead and cadmium) was not associated with DM in Cox regression models (lead exposure (HR) 1.01, 95% CI: 0.58 to 1.77, p 0.971; cadmium exposure HR 1.48, 95% CI: 0.61 to 3.55, p=0.385). Annual changes in FBS according to lead concentration at the beginning of exposure showed a positive correlation (r=0.072, p=0.032).ConclusionOur findings demonstrated that simple occupational exposure to heavy metals lead and cadmium was not associated with the incidence of DM. However, lead concentrations at the beginning of the exposure might be an indicator of DM and glucose elevations.

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Maternal Heavy Metal Exposure, Thyroid Hormones, and Birth Outcomes: A Prospective Cohort Study

The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism ◽

10.1210/jc.2018-02492 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 104 (11) ◽

pp. 5043-5052 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Xiaojie Sun ◽

Wenyu Liu ◽

Bin Zhang ◽

Xiantao Shen ◽

Chen Hu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Heavy Metals ◽

Heavy Metal ◽

Thyroid Hormones ◽

Birth Outcomes ◽

Metal Exposure ◽

Birth Size ◽

Heavy Metal Exposure ◽

Mediation Analyses ◽

Maternal Thyroid

AbstractContextMaternal thyroid hormones during pregnancy play a critical role in fetal development. However, whether maternal heavy metal exposure affects their thyroid hormones and the effects on fetal growth are still unclear.ObjectiveTo explore the effect of heavy metal exposure on maternal thyroid hormones and the potential mediation role of thyroid hormones on birth outcomes.MethodsConcentrations of heavy metals in urine samples and thyroid hormones in blood samples of 675 pregnant women were measured during early pregnancy in a cohort study conducted in China. Multivariable linear regressions were applied to explore the associations of maternal urinary heavy metal levels with both maternal thyroid hormones and birth outcomes. Mediation analyses were performed to assess the mediation role of thyroid hormones in these associations.ResultsMaternal urinary vanadium (V) exhibited an inverse association with free T3 (FT3) and FT3/free T4 (FT4) ratio levels. Urinary arsenic (As) and lead (Pb) had inverse relationships with FT3. We also observed the positive associations of maternal FT3 and FT3/FT4 ratio with birthweight. The mediation analyses suggested that 5.33% to 30.57% of the associations among V, As, and Pb levels and birth size might be mediated by maternal FT3 or FT3/FT4 ratio.ConclusionsWe have shown that maternal exposures to V, As, and Pb at early pregnancy were associated with decreased maternal FT3 or FT3/FT4 ratio, which might contribute to reduced birthweight. Mediation analyses indicated that maternal thyroid hormone was a possible mediator of the association between urinary heavy metals and birth size.

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Life History Traits in Two Drosophila Species Differently Affected by Microbiota Diversity under Lead Exposure

Insects ◽

10.3390/insects12121122 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (12) ◽

pp. 1122

Author(s):

Mirjana Beribaka ◽

Mihailo Jelić ◽

Marija Tanasković ◽

Cvijeta Lazić ◽

Marina Stamenković-Radak

Keyword(s):

Heavy Metal ◽

Life History ◽

Life History Traits ◽

Developmental Time ◽

Metal Exposure ◽

Heavy Metal Exposure ◽

Variable Regions ◽

Population Origin ◽

The Impact ◽

Microbiota Diversity

Life history traits determine the persistence and reproduction of each species. Factors that can affect life history traits are numerous and can be of different origin. We investigated the influence of population origin and heavy metal exposure on microbiota diversity and two life history traits, egg-to-adult viability and developmental time, in Drosophila melanogaster and Drosophila subobscura, grown in the laboratory on a lead (II) acetate-saturated substrate. We used 24 samples, 8 larval and 16 adult samples (two species × two substrates × two populations × two sexes). The composition of microbiota was determined by sequencing (NGS) of the V3–V4 variable regions of the 16S rRNA gene. The population origin showed a significant influence on life history traits, though each trait in the two species was affected differentially. Reduced viability in D. melanogaster could be a cost of fast development, decrease in Lactobacillus abundance and the presence of Wolbachia. The heavy metal exposure in D. subobscura caused shifts in developmental time but maintained the egg-to-adult viability at a similar level. Microbiota diversity indicated that the Komagataeibacter could be a valuable member of D. subobscura microbiota in overcoming the environmental stress. Research on the impact of microbiota on the adaptive response to heavy metals and consequently the potential tradeoffs among different life history traits is of great importance in evolutionary research.

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Role of Heavy Metals in the Incidence of Human Cancers

10.5772/intechopen.98259 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Vincent Salvatore Gallicchio ◽

Juley Harper

Keyword(s):

Heavy Metals ◽

Occupational Exposure ◽

Human Exposure ◽

Health Concern ◽

Metal Exposure ◽

Heavy Metal Exposure ◽

Carcinogenic Potential ◽

Cadmium Lead ◽

The Impact

There has been increased concern on many levels focused on the environmental and occupational exposure of heavy metals and their impact on disease, specifically the carcinogenic potential inducing cancer in humans. Because the impact of heavy metals on human health continues to be a major health concern, research continues to improve our understanding of the carcinogenic potential of these substances. Of particular concern have been human exposure to aluminum, arsenic, beryllium, cadmium, lead, mercury, nickel, and radium and their carcinogenic potential whether contact is via environmental or occupational exposure. This updated review focuses on the carcinogenic mechanisms heavy metals use to induce malignant transformation of cells as well as addressing the overall environmental and occupational hazards of heavy metal exposure.

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Compound health risk assessment of cumulative heavy metal exposure: a case study of a village near a battery factory in Henan Province, China

Environmental Science Processes & Impacts ◽

10.1039/d0em00104j ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 22 (6) ◽

pp. 1408-1422 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Yuling Jiang ◽

Jianhua Ma ◽

Xinling Ruan ◽

Xing Chen

Keyword(s):

Heavy Metals ◽

Risk Assessment ◽

Heavy Metal ◽

Health Risk ◽

Henan Province ◽

Metal Exposure ◽

Heavy Metal Exposure ◽

Battery Factory ◽

Cu And Zn

The concentrations of the heavy metals Hg, As, Ni, Pb, Cd, Cr, Cu and Zn in soil, groundwater, air, and locally produced grain (wheat and corn) and vegetables were determined in a village near a battery factory in Xinxiang, Henan Province, China.

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Association between Pb, Cd, and Hg Exposure and Liver Injury among Korean Adults

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18136783 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (13) ◽

pp. 6783

Author(s):

Do-won Kim ◽

Jeongwon Ock ◽

Kyong-Whan Moon ◽

Choong-Hee Park

Keyword(s):

Heavy Metals ◽

Heavy Metal ◽

Liver Injury ◽

Liver Function ◽

Large Population ◽

Metal Exposure ◽

Gamma Glutamyl Transferase ◽

Heavy Metal Exposure ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Glutamyl Transferase

Background: Exposure to lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), and mercury (Hg) has been reported to be associated with liver-related diseases. However, studies examining the association between heavy metal exposure and liver injury in a large population are scant and characterized by inconsistent results. This study aimed to evaluate the association between levels of heavy metal exposure and liver injury in the general population. Methods: Data for 2953 participants aged 19 years or more obtained from the Korean National Environmental Health Survey (KoNEHS) Cycle 3 (2015–2017) were used. The associations between levels of blood or urine heavy metals (Pb, Cd, and Hg) and liver function biomarkers [aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT)] were evaluated using multiple linear regression analysis. Results: Regarding the blood Pb (BPb), AST was higher in those of the 4th quartile, ALT was higher in those of the 2nd and 4th quartiles, and GGT was higher in those of the 3rd and 4th quartiles than in the 1st quartile. For urinary Cd (UCd), AST was higher in those of the 4th quartile; ALT was higher in those of the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th quartiles; and GGT was higher in the 4th quartile than in the 1st quartile. For the blood Hg (BHg), AST was higher in those of the 2nd and 4th quartile, ALT was higher in those of the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th quartiles; and GGT was higher in those of the 3rd and 4th quartiles than in the 1st quartile. There was no significant difference between urinary Hg (UHg) and liver function markers. Conclusion: Heavy metal exposure showed an association with liver injury among the general adult population in Korea. Further studies are required to clarify the relationship between heavy metals and liver injury.

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Heavy Metal Sources and Their Effects on Human Health

10.5772/intechopen.95370 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Narjala Rama Jyothi

Keyword(s):

Heavy Metals ◽

Heavy Metal ◽

Atomic Weight ◽

Metal Exposure ◽

Human Beings ◽

Heavy Metal Exposure ◽

Iron Cobalt ◽

Heavy Metals Toxicity ◽

Route Of Exposure ◽

Definition Of

Heavy metals are defined in many ways, based on various factors such as density and atomic weight. Some of the heavy metals are essential as nutrients for humans such as iron, cobalt and, zinc in small quantities but are toxic in higher quantities. But few metals, such as lead, cadmium and, mercury are poisonous even in small quantities. The toxicity of heavy metals is depending on concentration,period of exposure and route of exposure. Heavy metal exposure takes place on human beings through inhalation from the atmosphere, intake through drinking water and, ingestion through the skin by dermal contact. The present chapter describes the definition of heavy metals, sources of these heavy metals, toxicity and, their impact on various environmental segments, such as air, water and, soil.

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Are Endophytic Bacteria an Option for Increasing Heavy Metal Tolerance of Plants? A Meta-Analysis of the Effect Size

Frontiers in Environmental Science ◽

10.3389/fenvs.2020.603668 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 ◽

Author(s):

Valeria Franco-Franklin ◽

Sandra Moreno-Riascos ◽

Thaura Ghneim-Herrera

Keyword(s):

Heavy Metals ◽

Heavy Metal ◽

Effect Size ◽

Endophytic Bacteria ◽

Host Plants ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Heavy Metal Stress ◽

Metal Stress ◽

Symbiotic Association ◽

Biotechnological Applications

Plant endophytic bacteria have received special attention in recent decades for their ability to improve plant response to multiple stresses. A positive effect of endophytes on plant’s ability to cope with drought, salinity, nitrogen deficiency, and pathogens have already been demonstrated in numerous studies, and recently this evidence was consolidated in a meta-analysis of published data. Endophytic bacteria have also been implicated in increasing resistance to heavy metals in plants; despite the important biotechnological applications of such effect in heavy metal bioremediation and agriculture, efforts to systematically analyze studies in this field have been limited. In this study, we address this task with the objective of establishing whether the findings made for other types of stresses extend to the response to heavy metals. Specifically, we seek to establish if plant inoculation with plant-growth promoting endophytic bacteria have an impact on their tolerance to heavy metal stress? We carried out a meta-analysis of the effect size of inoculation with endophytic bacteria on the host plant biomass in response to heavy metal stress (aluminum, arsenic, cadmium, copper, chromium, manganese, nickel, lead, and zinc), which included 27 (from 76 published in the last 10 years) studies under controlled conditions that evaluated 19 host plants and 20 bacterial genera. Our results suggest that endophytic bacteria increase the biomass production of host plants subjected to different heavy metals, indicating their effectiveness in protecting plants from a wide range of metal toxicities. Stress mitigation by the bacteria was similar among the different plant groups with the exception of non-accumulating plants that benefit most from the symbiotic association. Host identity and heavy metal concentration seem to influence the effect of the bacteria. Our analysis revealed that bacterial consortia provide the greatest benefit although the most common biotechnological applications are not directed towards them, and support the value of endophytic bacteria as an alternative to mitigate heavy metal stress in a wide variety of hosts.

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ASSESSMENT OF HEAVY METAL CONCENTRATION IN VEGETABLES DRIED ALONG FUNTUA-DANJA HIGHWAY KATSINA STATE, NIGERIA

FUDMA Journal of Sciences ◽

10.33003/fjs-2021-0501-591 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

pp. 467-471

Author(s):

U. M. Kankara ◽

Rabiu Nasiru ◽

Nuraddeen Nasiru Garba ◽

Jamila Musa Kankara ◽

Umar Musa Kankara

Keyword(s):

Heavy Metals ◽

Heavy Metal ◽

Atomic Absorption Spectrometry ◽

Metal Contamination ◽

Heavy Metal Contamination ◽

Absorption Spectrometry ◽

Heavy Metal Concentration ◽

Metal Exposure ◽

Heavy Metal Exposure ◽

Concentration Levels

One of the major routes of heavy metal exposure to humans is via the consumption of vegetable. The study assessed the contribution of automobile emission on the concentration levels of heavy metals in some of commonly consumed vegetables in Katsina state, Nigeria using Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (AAS). Fresh and dried samples of five (5) commonly consumed vegetables were obtained from Danja-Funtua highway road, 0.5 g of each sample was measured into a clean dried beaker and 10 ml of acidic mixture of HNO3/HClO4 in ratio 2:1 was added to the sample for digestion. The heavy metals concentration in this study ranges from 0.6 – 75.5mg/kg, 0.31 – 1.2mg/kg 278 – 1470mg/kg, 0.4 – 36.3mg/kg and 28 – 65 mg/kg for Pb, Cd, Fe, Ni and Cu respectively. Levels of heavy metals were all found to be above the acceptable limits indicating that inhabitants are at risk of heavy metal contamination

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Assessment of residents’ total environmental exposure to heavy metals in China

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-019-52649-w ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Xiuge Zhao ◽

Zhenglei Li ◽

Danlu Wang ◽

Ji Li ◽

Bin Zou ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Heavy Metals ◽

Heavy Metal ◽

Environmental Exposure ◽

Metal Pollution ◽

Rural Areas ◽

Heavy Metal Pollution ◽

Metal Exposure ◽

Heavy Metal Exposure ◽

Urban Rural ◽

Urban And Rural Areas

Abstract Heavy metal pollution in the air, water, and soil has attracted substantial interest recently; however, assessment of the total human environmental exposure remains limited. Therefore, determining the total human environmental exposure is imperative for the management and control of heavy metal pollution. This study assessed the total environmental exposure levels of heavy metals as well as the exposure contributions of air, water, and soil, focusing on Hg, Cd, As, Pb, and Cr. Data from 3,855 volunteers from the cities of Taiyuan, Dalian, Shanghai, Wuhan, Chengdu, and Lanzhou allowed for comparison of the exposures in urban and rural areas. The levels of total human environmental exposure of Hg, Cd, As, Pb, and Cr were 1.82 × 10−6 mg/(kg·d), 1.58 × 10−6 mg/(kg·d), 3.87 × 10−5 mg/(kg·d), 1.79 × 10−5 and 7.47 × 10−5 mg/(kg·d), respectively. There were regional, urban-rural, sex, and age differences in the levels of heavy metal exposure. Water pollution was determined to be the largest contributor to heavy metal exposure, accounting for 97.87%, 92.50%, 80.51%, 76.16% and 79.46% of the Hg, Cd, As, Pb, and Cr, followed by air and soil pollution. These results can provide data to inform environmental protection policies and identify the priority pollutants that can help identify and prevent health risks due to overexposure to these heavy metal pollutants.

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