عنوان مجله
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ECOTOXICOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY
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چکیده
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Cadmium (Cd) pollution in the soil threatens the quality of environmental health, and deleteriously affects
physiological activities of crops. Symbiosis of endophytic fungi with various plants is a promising manner to
improving numerous plant characteristics and remediating heavy metal-polluted soils. In this pot experiment,
the influence of root endophyte fungus Piriformospora indica on growth, physiological parameters and organs Cd
accumulation in sunflower cv. Zaria plants under the toxic levels of Cd (0, 40, 80 and 120 mg/kg soil) were
studied. Increasing Cd concentration in the soil reduced growth parameters, chlorophyll (Chl) a and Chl b
contents, and Fv/Fm and ETR (electron transport rate) values, but increased root, stem and leaf Cd accumulation,
and proline content. The presence of P. indica significantly enhanced growth, Chl a, Chl b and proline
contents, and Fv/Fm and ETR values. Compared to non-inoculated ones, P. indica-inoculated plants had higher
Cd accumulation in root, whereas lower Cd accumulation in stem and leaf. The present study strongly supports
the established ability of P. indica to alleviate Cd toxicity by improving the physiological status in sunflower.
Furthermore, this endophyte fungus can be useful for Cd phyto-stabilization in sunflower roots in contaminated
soils.
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