Environmental & Analytical Toxicology

Pb Uptake in Roadside Grown Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) in the Sudan Savanna, Kano State

Abstract

M’ember C Anongo, Sunday P Bako, Dora N Iortsuun and Wisdom S Japhet

Cereal crops grown under irrigation in a semi-arid ecological habitat can be used to assess food quality and safety of agricultural systems at proximity to highways in the Sudan savannah of Northern Nigeria. This study focussed on the risk assessments of Pb transfer, translocation and uptake at selected growth stages (15-, 30-, 45-, 60-, 75- and 90-days representing seedling or germination, tillering, shooting/booting, earing, flowering and ripening stages respectively of two cultivars of Triticum aestivum L. The experimental (SU 1) and control (SU 2) sites were selected based on distances (345 m and 1936 m) from the Kano-Zaria Highway. Pb levels in soils and the two cultivars of Triticum aestivum L. was measured using the double-beam AAS and plant uptake factors (PUF), soil-plant transfer coefficients (TC) and translocation factors (TF) were worked out. Result reveals differences in metal levels of the cultivars of wheat according to growth stages and plant parts. Pb levels was highly significant (P=0.05 and 0.01) in the stems of Siettecerros at the control site indicating selective ability of cultivar to Pb. Pb levels were highest in both cultivars at the 30-days growth stage indicating sensitivity of tillering stage to Pb uptake. A greater than unity value indicate anthropogenic source of Pb. Siettecerros had the highest TF indicating incorporation of higher levels of Pb in the edible plant parts. A higher PUF (45), TC (6.32) and TF (7.66) for Pb in Pavon-76 and Siettecerros respectively, indicates their suitability for bioremediation particularly, phytoextraction of polluted soils from atmospheric pollutants.