Biological Systems: Theory and Innovation

Effect of heavy metal ions on early development of Sinapis alba L.

Nazariy Kozachok*, Nataliya Golub

wotnazik@gmail.com

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Abstract

Soil contamination with heavy metal ions can limit land use and reduce the effectiveness of phytoremediation. Sinapis alba L. is considered as a promising test culture and a potential phytoremediant, but its response to various metals in the soil system needs to be clarified. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of Zn2+, Cu2+, Pb2+, and Fe3+ ions on the viability of seeds, the length of shoots and roots of S. alba. The experiment was performed in a model soil experiment with three repetitions for each variant. On Day 5, a significant decrease in viability was detected only under the action of Cu2+ at a concentration of 300 mg/dm3, where this indicator was 77.9 ± 1.2%. On Day 10, the strongest effect was observed for Fe3+: viability decreased to 34.9 ± 1.2%, 27.7 ± 1.2% and 20.5 ± 1.2% at concentrations of 600, 800, and 1,000 mg/dm3, respectively. For Cu2+ this indicator was 74.7-56.6%, Zn2+ – 80.7-67.5%, and Pb2+ – 81.9% at the highest concentration. The length of shoots and roots decreased under the action of all the metals under study. Fe3+ caused the greatest growth suppression: the length of the shoots decreased from 54.62 to 9.94 mm, and the roots – from 35.96 to 13.09 mm. Therefore, morphometric parameters were found to be more sensitive to metal stress than to viability, and should be used for a comprehensive assessment of soil phytotoxicity. The results can be used by specialists in the field of environmental monitoring, soil science, and phytoremediation for a comprehensive assessment of the toxicity of soils contaminated with heavy metals

Keywords

phytotoxicity; biotest of phytotoxicity; grey forest soils; phytoremediation; metal-specific stress

Suggested citation
Kozachok, N., & Golub, N. (2026). Effect of heavy metal ions on early development of Sinapis alba L.. Biological Systems: Theory and Innovation, 17(3), 84-93. https://doi.org/10.31548/biologiya/3.2026.84
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