Radial Oxygen Loss in Wetland Plants: Potential Impacts on Remediation of Contaminated Sediments
Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 139, Issue 4
Abstract
Remediation of sediments contaminated with persistent organic compounds such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons has been problematic due to the lack of oxygen in saturated sediments. Certain wetland plants have the potential to create aerobic conditions in the anoxic sediments through radial oxygen loss into the rhizosphere. The objective of the current study was to utilize several methods of measuring radial oxygen loss to identify wetland species with relatively high rates of oxygen loss into the rhizosphere. The results show clearly that there are significant differences between plant species in terms of radial oxygen loss. Rates in the current study ranged from (Lobelia cardinalis) oxygenated to (Sagittaria latifolia). In addition, the three methods of measuring radial oxygen loss showed consistency in the high radial oxygen loss species, but we found that the methylene blue agar method was more sensitive in detecting differences between species and also enabled visualization of where the radial oxygen loss was taking place across the root system.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Acknowledgments
The authors graciously acknowledge the funding provided by the Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs at the University of Minnesota Crookston through both the new faculty research grants program and the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Crookston (UROC) programs.
References
Armstrong, W. (1971). “Radial oxygen losses from intact rice roots as affected by distance for the apex, respiration and waterlogging.” Physiol. Plant., 25, 192–197.
Armstrong, W. (1979). “Aeration in higher plants.” Adv. Bot. Res., 7, 225–332.
Armstrong, W., Justin, S. H. F. W., Beckett, P. M., and Lythe, S. (1991). “Root adaptation to soil waterlogging.” Aquat. Bot., 39(1–2), 57–73.
Bosma, T. N. P., Middledorp, P. J. M., Schraa, G., and Zehnder, A. J. B. (1997). “Mass transfer limitations of biotransformation: Quantifying bioavailability.” Environ. Sci. Technol., 31, 248–252.
Calvillo, J. M., and Alexander, M. (1996). “Mechanism of microbial utilization of biphenyl sorbed to polyacrylic beads.” Appl. Microbiol. Biotechnol., 45, 383–390.
Chabbi, A., Pietsch, W., Wiehe, W., and Hüttl, R. F. (1998). “Juncus bulbosus L.: strategies of survival under extreme phytotoxic conditions in acid mine lakes in the Lusatian mining district, Germany.” Int. Ecol. Environ. Sci., 24, 271–292.
Chung, W. K., and King, G. M. (1999). “Biogeochemical transformations and potential polyaromatic hydrocarbon degradation in macrofaunal burrow sediments.” Aquat. Microb. Ecol., 19, 285–295.
Colmer, T. D. (2003). “Long-distance transport of gases in plants: A perspective on internal aeration and radial oxygen loss from roots.” Plant Cell Environ., 26(1), 17–36.
Connell, E. L., Colmer, T. D., and Walker, D. I. (1999).”Radial oxygen loss from intact roots of Halophila ovalis as a function of distance behind the root tip and shoot illumination.” Aquat. Bot., 63(3–4), 219–228.
Cornelissen, G., van Noort, P. C. M., and Govers, H. A. J. (1998). “Mechanism of slow desorption of organic compounds from sediments: A study using model sorbents.” Environ. Sci. Technol., 32, 3124–3131.
Deng, H., Ye, Z. H., and Wong, M. H. (2009). “Lead, zinc, and iron () tolerances in wetland plants and relation to root anatomy and spatial pattern of ROL.” Environ. Exp. Bot., 65, 353–362.
Ervin, G. N., and Wetzel, R. G. (2002). “Effects of sodium hypochlorite sterilization and dry cold storage on germination of Juncus effusus L.” Wetlands, 22(1), 191–195.
Glick, B. R. (2003). “Phytoremediation: Synergistic use of plants and bacteria to clean up the environment.” Biotechnol. Adv., 21, 383–393.
Grosser, R. J., Friedric, M., Ward, D. M., and Inskeep, W. P. (2000). “Effect of model sorptive phases on phenanthrene biodegradation: Different enrichment conditions influence bioavailability and selection of phenanthrene-degrading isolates.” Appl. Environ. Microbiol., 66, 2695–2702.
Harayama, S., Kok, M., and Neidle, E. L. (1992). “Functional and evolutionary relationships among diverse oxygenases.” Annu. Rev. Microbiol., 46, 565–601.
Hedge, R. S., and Fletcher, J. S. (1996). “Influence of plant growth stage and season on the release of root phenolics by mulberry as related to development of phytoremediation technology.” Chemosphere, 32(12), 2471–2479.
Kludze, H. K., DeLaune, R. D., and Patrick, W. H. (1994). “A colorimetric method of assaying dissolved oxygen loss from container-grown rice roots.” Agron. J., 86, 483–487.
Li, H., Ye, Z. H., Wei, Z. J., and Wong, M. H. (2011). “Root porosity and radial oxygen loss related to arsenic tolerance and uptake in wetland plants.” Environ. Pollut., 159, 30–37.
McNally, D. L., Mihelcic, J. R., and Lueking, D. R. (1999). “Biodegradation of mixtures of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons under aerobic and nitrate-reducing conditions.” Chemosphere, 38(6), 1313–1321.
Mei, X. Q., Ye, Z. H., and Wong, M. H. (2009). “The relationship of root porosity and radial oxygen loss on arsenic tolerance and uptake in rice grains and straw.” Environ. Pollut., 157, 2550–2557.
Ogram, A. V., Jessup, R. E., Ou, L. T., and Rao, P. S. C. (1985). “Effects of sorption on biological degradation rates of (2,4-dichlorophenoxy) acetic acid in soils.” Appl. Environ. Microbiol., 49(3), 582–587.
Pedersen, O., Binzer, T., and Borum, J. (2004). “Sulphide intrusion in eelgrass (Zostera marina L.).” Plant Cell Environ., 27(5), 595–602.
Sorrell, B. K. (1999). “Effects of external oxygen demand on radial oxygen loss by Juncus roots in titanium citrate solutions.” Plant Cell Environ., 22(12), 1587–1593.
Tessenow, U., and Baynes, Y. (1978). “Experimental effects of Isoetes lacustris L. on the distribution of Eh, pH, Fe, and Mn in lake sediments.” Verh. Int. Verein. Limnol., 20, 2358–2362.
Trolldenier, G. (1988). “Visualisation of oxidizing power of rice roots and of possible participation of bacteria in iron deposition.” Z. Pflanzenernahr. Bodenk., 151, 117–121.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 139 • Issue 4 • April 2013
Pages: 496 - 501
Copyright
© 2013 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Aug 1, 2011
Accepted: Jul 27, 2012
Published ahead of production: Aug 2, 2012
Published online: Mar 15, 2013
Published in print: Apr 1, 2013
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.