Potentially Toxic Metals in the High-Biomass Non-Hyperaccumulating Plant <i>Amaranthus viridis</i>: Human Health Risks and Phytoremediation Potentials
Chee Kong Yap,
Aziran Yaacob,
Wen Siang Tan,
Khalid Awadh Al-Mutairi,
Wan Hee Cheng,
Koe Wei Wong,
Franklin Berandah Edward,
Mohamad Saupi Ismail,
Chen-Feng You,
Weiyun Chew,
Rosimah Nulit,
Mohd Hafiz Ibrahim,
Bintal Amin,
Moslem Sharifinia
Affiliations
Chee Kong Yap
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400 UPM, Selangor, Malaysia
Aziran Yaacob
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400 UPM, Selangor, Malaysia
Wen Siang Tan
Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400 UPM, Selangor, Malaysia
Khalid Awadh Al-Mutairi
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Tabuk, Tabuk 741, Saudi Arabia
Wan Hee Cheng
Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, INTI International University, Persiaran Perdana BBN, Nilai 71800, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia
Koe Wei Wong
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400 UPM, Selangor, Malaysia
Franklin Berandah Edward
Natural Resources and Environment Board, Petra Jaya, Kuching 93050, Sarawak, Malaysia
Mohamad Saupi Ismail
Fisheries Research Institute, Batu Maung 11960, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia
Chen-Feng You
Department of Earth Sciences, National Cheng-Kung University, No 1, University Road, Tainan City 701, Taiwan
Weiyun Chew
Centre for Pre-University Study, Level, 6, Unity Building, MAHSA University, Bandar Saujana Putra, Jenjarom 42610, Selangor, Malaysia
Rosimah Nulit
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400 UPM, Selangor, Malaysia
Mohd Hafiz Ibrahim
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400 UPM, Selangor, Malaysia
Bintal Amin
Fisheries and Marine Science Faculty, Universitas Riau, Pekanbaru, Riau 28292, Indonesia
Moslem Sharifinia
Shrimp Research Center, Iranian Fisheries Science Research Institute, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Bushehr 7516989177, Iran
Human health risk and phytoremediation of potentially toxic metals (PTMs) in the edible vegetables have been widely discussed recently. This study aimed to determine the concentrations of four PTMs, namely Cd, Fe, Ni, and Zn) in Amaranthus viridis (leaves, stems, and roots) collected from 11 sampling sites in Peninsular Malaysia and to assess their human health risk (HHR). In general, the metal levels followed the order: roots > stems > leaves. The metal concentrations (µg/g) in the leaves of A. viridis ranged from 0.45 to 2.18 dry weight (dw) (0.05–0.26 wet weight (ww)), 74.8 to 535 dw (8.97–64.2 ww), 2.02 to 7.45 dw (0.24–0.89 ww), and 65.2 to 521 dw (7.83–62.6 ww), for Cd, Fe, Ni, and Zn, respectively. The positive relationships between the metals, the plant parts, and the geochemical factions of their habitat topsoils indicated the potential of A. viridis as a good biomonitor of Cd, Fe, and Ni pollution. With most of the values of the bioconcentration factor (BCF) > 1.0 and the transfer factor (TF) > 1.0, A. viridis was a very promising phytoextraction agent of Ni and Zn. Additionally, with most of the values of BCF > 1.0 and TF A. viridis was a very promising phytostabiliser of Cd and Fe. With respect to HHR, the target hazard quotients (THQ) for Cd, Fe, Pb, and Zn in the leaves of A. viridis were all below 1.00, indicating there were no non-carcinogenic risks of the four metals to consumers, including children and adults. Nevertheless, routine monitoring of PTMs in Amaranthus farms is much needed.
