TITLE:
Study of the Copper, Chromium, Manganese and Zinc Contents in the Species Azorella spinosa (Apiaceae), Collected in the Maule Region, Chile
AUTHORS:
Jaime Tapia, Jorge Cornejo, Margarita Gutiérrez, Patricio Peñailillo, Ricardo Baettig, Luis Vargas-Chacoff, Jessica Espinoza, Aurelio San Martín
KEYWORDS:
Azorella spinosa, Toxic Metals, Atomic Absorption, Maule Region
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Environmental Protection,
Vol.10 No.5,
May
10,
2019
ABSTRACT: The increase in prevalence of environmental pollution, especially
soil contamination with toxic metals has led to their uptake in the human food
chains through plant parts. Accumulation and magnification of heavy metals in
human tissues through comsuption of herbal medicine can cause hazardous impacts
on health. Therefore, chemical profiling of four heavy metals (Cu, Cr, Mn and
Zn) was undertaken in samples of Azorella
spinosa from coast and mountain of Maule Region in Chile. The Cu, Cr, Mn
and Zn concentrations were determined in plants of the species Azorella spinosa and their soils of
origin. For each plant, the metal contents in the stalk, leaves and soil were
determined by flame atomic absorption spectroscopy. The methodology was
validated using certified reference material: BIMEP-432 for the plant samples
and MESS-1 for the soil samples. The concentration ranges found in the plant
tissue were: Cu: 1.2 - 62.5; Cr: 0.2 - 3.2; Mn: 188.6 - 1345.1 and Zn: 7.5 -
55.9 mg·kg-1 (dry weight). For the soil samples, the ranges were:
Cu: 6.4 - 81.5; Cr: 4.6 - 50.4; Mn: 335.6 - 1936.1 and Zn: 15.6 - 65.9 mg·kg-1 (dry weight). The results were evaluated statistically (two-way ANOVA) to
correlate the Cu, Cr, Mn and Zn concentrations in Azorella spinosa plant tissues with those in the soil samples from
the corresponding sampling areas.