Expression of circadian clock genes and diurnal oscillations of key physiological events in response to AsV and AsIII in soybean plants

Soybean (Glycine max L.) is often cultivated in soils with a high content of arsenic (As). Since this greatly affects crop growth and yield, the response mechanisms underlying tolerance to As should be well understood. Circadian rhythms are known to play a central role in plant adaptation to stressful conditions. Therefore, our aim was to evaluate the effects of arseniate (AsV) and arsenite (AsIII) on the expression of key circadian clock genes (CG) and on the possible diurnal oscillation of physiological events induced by As in soybean plants. Leaves and roots were evaluated during light-dark phases at 4-h intervals. The changes caused by As in the expression profiles of all CGs analyzed depended on its chemical form and the plant organ involved. Overexpression of GmLCL1, GmTOC1, GmPRR9 and GmGI was observed in leaves mainly upon AsV-treatment, while underexpression of GmLCL1 and overexpression of GmPRR9, GmELF4 and GmGI occurred in roots, mainly upon AsIII-treatment. Moreover, As seemed to have an influence on the daily fluctuations observed in events triggered in response to the stress, such as stomatal aperture control, phytochelatin (PC) and glutathione (GSH) content, and total antioxidant, ascorbate (APx) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activities. In particular, the increase in the synthesis of PCs (the main As chelators) and the decrease in their precursor, GSH, were higher during the light phase, while APx and GPx activities increased during the dark phase in As-treated plants. The results suggest a link between the circadian clock and the response to As in soybean plants, since exposure to As modified CG expression and induced important changes in the diurnal oscillation of several As-response mechanisms. Circadian clock regulation, then, might play a vital role in the tolerance to As.Fil: Vezza, Mariana Elisa. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud; ArgentinaFil: Sosa Alderete, Lucas Gastón. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud; ArgentinaFil: Agostini, Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud; ArgentinaFil: Talano, Melina Andrea. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud; Argentin

Hairy roots, their multiple applications and recent patents

In the last years, hairy root (HR) cultures are gaining attention in the biotechnology industry. This particular plant cell culture derives from explants infected with Agrobacterium rhizogenes. They constitute a relatively new approach to in vitro plant biotechnology and modern HR cultures are far away from the valuables findings performed by Philip R. White in the 1930´s, who obtained indefinite growth of excised root tips. HR cultures are characterized by genetic and biochemical stability and high growth rate without expensive exogenous hormones source. HR cultures have allowed a deep study of plant metabolic pathways and the production of valuable secondary metabolites and enzymes, with therapeutic or industrial application. Furthermore, the potential of HR cultures is increasing continuously since different biotechnological strategies such as genetic engineering, elicitation and metabolic traps are currently being explored for discovery of new metabolites and pathways, as well as for increasing metabolites biosynthesis and/or secretion. Advances in design of proper bioreactors for HR growth are being of great interest, since scale up of metabolite production will allow the integration of this technology to industrial processes. Another application of HR cultures is related to their capabilities to biotransform and to degrade different xenobiotics. In this context, removal assays using this plant model system are useful tools for phytoremediation assays, previous to the application in the field. This review highlights the more recent application of HRs and those new patents which show their multiple utilities.Fil: Talano, Melina Andrea. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba; ArgentinaFil: Wevar Oller, Ana Laura. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba; ArgentinaFil: González, Paola Solange. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba; ArgentinaFil: Agostini, Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba; Argentin

Characterization of a phenol-degrading bacterium isolated from an industrial effluent and its potential application for bioremediation

The use of native microorganisms is a useful strategy for phenol bioremediation. In the present work, a bacterial strain, named RTE1.4, was isolated from effluents of a chemical industry. The strain was able to grow at high concentrations of phenol and its derivatives, such as guaiacol, 2,4-dichlorophenol and pentachlorophenol, as well as in a medium containing industrial effluents. This bacterium was identified as Acinetobacter sp. using morphological, physiological, biochemical and 16S rRNA gene analysis. Acinetobacter sp. RTE1.4 degraded phenol (200 to 600 mg/L) at wide pH range and temperature (5-9 and 25-37°C, respectively) demonstrating high adaptation ability to different conditions. The strain would metabolize phenol by the ortho-pathway since catechol 1,2-dioxygenase activity was detected. When bacteria were grown in medium containing phenol, an altered whole-cell protein pattern was observed by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE), with the lack of some low-molecular mass polypeptides and an increase in the relative abundance of high-molecular mass proteins after treatment. Considering that the use of native strains in bioremediation studies shows several ecological advantages and that the studied bacterium showed high tolerance and biodegradation capabilities, Acinetobacter sp. RTE1.4 could be an appropriate microorganism for improving bioremediation and biotreatment of areas polluted with phenol and/or some of its derivatives. Moreover, the establishment of the optimal growth conditions (pH, temperature, concentration of the pollutant) would provide baseline data for bulk production of the strain and its use in bioremediation processes. © 2013 Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.Fil: Paisio, Cintia Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud; ArgentinaFil: Talano, Melina Andrea. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular. Sección Química Biológica; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: González, Paola Solange. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular. Sección Química Biológica; ArgentinaFil: Pajuelo Domínguez, Eloisa. Universidad de Sevilla; EspañaFil: Agostini, Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud; Argentin

Evaluation of phenol detoxification by Brassica napus hairy roots, using Allium cepa test

Introduction: Meristematic mitotic cells of Allium cepa constitute an adequate material for cytotoxicity and genotoxicity evaluation of environmental pollutants, such as phenol, which is a contaminant frequently found in several industrial effluents. Results and discussion: In the present work, Brassica napus hairy roots (HR) were used for phenol removal assays. The toxicity of post-removal solutions (PRS) and phenol solutions was analyzed. These HR removed the contaminant with high efficiency (100-80% for phenol solutions containing 10-250 mg/L, respectively). Phenol solutions treated with B. napus HR showed a significant reduction of general toxicity compared to untreated phenol solutions, since the IC50 values were 318. 39 and 229. 02 mg/L, respectively. Moreover, PRS presented lower cytotoxicity and genotoxicity than that found in phenol solutions untreated. The mitotic index (MI) observed in meristematic cells treated with PRS (100 and 250 mg/L of phenol) showed an increase of 35% and 42%, whereas the chromosome aberrations showed a significant decrease. According to these results, B. napus HR cultures could be used for the treatment of solutions contaminated with phenol, since we observed not only high removal efficiency, but also an important reduction of the general toxicity, cytotoxicity, and genotoxicity.Fil: González, Paola Solange. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba; ArgentinaFil: Maglione, Guillermo A.. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; ArgentinaFil: Giordana, Micaela. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; ArgentinaFil: Paisio, Cintia Elizabeth. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; ArgentinaFil: Talano, Melina Andrea. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba; ArgentinaFil: Agostini, Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba; Argentin

Impact of double inoculation with Bradyrhizobium japonicum E109 and Azospirillum brasilense Az39 on soybean plants grown under arsenic stress

Inoculation practice with plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) has been proposed as a good biotechnological tool to enhance plant performance and alleviate heavy metal/metalloid stress. Soybean is often cultivated in soil with high arsenic (As) content or irrigated with As-contaminated groundwater, which causes deleterious effects on its growth and yield, even when it was inoculated with rhizobium. Thus, the effect of double inoculation with known PGPB strains, Bradyrhizobium japonicum E109 and Azospirillum brasilense Az39 was evaluated in plants grown in pots under controlled conditions and treated with As. First, the viability of these co-cultivated bacteria was assayed using a flow cytometry analysis using SYTO9 and propidium iodide (PI) dyes. This was performed in vitro to evaluate the bacterial population dynamic under 25 μM AsV and AsIII treatment. A synergistic effect was observed when bacteria were co-cultured, since mortality diminished, compared to each growing alone. Indole acetic acid (IAA) produced by A. brasilense Az39 would be one of the main components involved in B. japonicum E109 mortality reduction, mainly under AsIII treatment. Regarding in vivo assays, under As stress, plant growth improvement, nodule number and N content increase were observed in double inoculated plants. Furthermore, double inoculation strategy reduced As translocation to aerial parts thus improving As phytostabilization potential of soybean plants. These results suggest that double inoculation with B. japonicum E109 and A. brasilense Az39 could be a safe and advantageous practice to improve growth and yield of soybean exposed to As, accompanied by an important metalloid phytostabilization.Fil: Armendariz, Ana Laura. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Talano, Melina Andrea. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular. Sección Química Biológica; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Olmos Nicotra, Maria Florencia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular. Sección Química Biológica; ArgentinaFil: Escudero, Leticia Belén. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Breser, Maria Laura. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Centro de Investigaciones y Transferencia de Villa María. Universidad Nacional de Villa María. Centro de Investigaciones y Transferencia de Villa María; ArgentinaFil: Porporatto, Carina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Centro de Investigaciones y Transferencia de Villa María. Universidad Nacional de Villa María. Centro de Investigaciones y Transferencia de Villa María; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba; ArgentinaFil: Agostini, Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto. Facultad de Cs.exactas Fisicoquimicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Centro Cientifico Tecnologico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Biotecnologia Ambiental y Salud.; Argentin

Screening of plant growth-promoting traits in arsenic-resistant bacteria isolated from the rhizosphere of soybean plants from Argentinean agricultural soil

Aims: The purpose of this study was to investigate plantgrowth promoting traits in native and arsenic (As) highly-resistant bacterial strains isolated from the rhizosphere of soybean (Glycine max) plants grown in an Argentinean agricultural field. Methods: Determination of MICs (Minimum inhibitory concentration) was carried out on solid media supplemented with arsenite (As 3+) or arsenate (As 5+). Morphological, cultural, physiological, biochemical and molecular characterization, and in vitro determination of plant growth promoting (PGP) properties of As resistant isolates were carried out. Arsenic in soil samples was determined by ICP-OES while residual arsenic on post-removal culture medium and accumulation in cells were estimated by GF-AAS after wet acid digestion. Results: Isolated strains included γ-proteobacteria such as Enterobacter sp. and Pseudomonas sp., and actinobacteria as Rhodococcus sp. All bacterial strains grew in presence of very high arsenite -over 24mMand arsenate –over 400mM- concentrations. Pseudomonas sp. strains presented simultaneously several in vitro PGP traits, although Rhodococcus erythropolis AW3 did not display PGP traits. However, R. erythropolis AW3 was the most As resistant strain and removed and accumulated the greatest amounts of the metalloid. Conclusion: The presence of As resistant and plantgrowth promoting bacterial strains in the rhizosphere of Glycine max, in arsenic containing agricultural soil, suggest that they could potentially play an important role in plant-growth promotion in stressed conditions. These strains were able to remove and accumulate As from liquid media, thus they could be beneficial for sustainable crop production.Fil: Wevar Oller, Ana Laura. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Talano, Melina Andrea. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Agostini, Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Lipid Profile Remodeling in Soybean Roots as a Response to Arsenic Stress

Arsenic (As) in groundwater and soils for soybean (Glycine max L.) irrigation and cultivation constitutes a major agronomic problem since the metalloid can be incorporated into plant tissues. Phospholipids (PL), and their constituent fatty acids (FA), are main components of cell membranes, so they are one of the biomolecules that firstly sense external conditions. Since the role of PL and FA in the response of soybean to As is unknown, our objective was to analyze possible changes in these molecules profiles in roots exposed to arsenate (AsV) and arsenite (AsIII). For that, PL and FA from soybean plants treated during 1 and 8 d with As-enriched solutions were analyzed by HPLC-MS/MS and GC-MS. A decrease in the relative amount of unsaturated FA together with an increase in saturated FA was found in roots exposed to both chemical forms of As compared to control condition. As a result, less unsaturated FA/saturated FA ratio and double bond index (IDE) occurred under exposure to As. Changes in PL composition were more evident after 8 d, including a decrease in the total content of phosphatidylethanolamine, with the consequent rise in the phosphatidylcholine/phosphatidylethanolamine ratio, and an increase in the total content of phosphatidic acid. This remodeling of PL and FA in soybean roots could be associated with a reduction in the fluidity and permeability of cell membranes, which would be a key aspect in the adaptive response of root tissue to As stress.Fil: Vezza, Mariana Elisa. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud; ArgentinaFil: Flor, Sabrina Andrea. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Tecnología Farmacéutica; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Agostini, Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; ArgentinaFil: Talano, Melina Andrea. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud; Argentin

Arsenic effect on the model crop symbiosis Bradyrhizobium–soybean

Soybean (Glycine max) is often being cultivated in soils with moderate to high arsenic (As) concentrations or under irrigation with As contaminated groundwater. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of As on soybean germination, development and nodulation in soybean-Bradyrhizobium japonicum E109 symbiosis, as a first-step approach to evaluate the impact of As on soybean production. Semi-hydroponic assays were conducted using soybean seedlings inoculated and non-inoculated with B. japonicum E109 and treated with arsenate or arsenite. Soybean germination and development, at early stage of growth, were significantly reduced from 10 μM arsenate or arsenite. This also was seen for soybean seedlings inoculated with B. japonicum mainly with arsenite where, in addition, the number of effective nodules was reduced, despite that the microorganism tolerated the metalloid. This minor nodulation could be due to a reduced motility (swarming and swimming) of the microorganism in presence of As. Arsenic concentration in roots was about 250-times higher than in shoots. Transference coefficient values indicated that As translocation to aerial parts was low and As accumulated mainly in roots, without significant differences between inoculated and non-inoculated plants. The presence of As restricted soybean–B. japonicum symbiosis and hence, the efficiency of most used commercial inoculants for soybean. Thus, water and/or soils containing As would negatively impact on soybean production, even in plants inoculated with B. japonicum E109.Fil: Talano, Melina Andrea. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; ArgentinaFil: Cejas, Romina Beatríz. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Centro de Investigaciones en Química Biológica de Córdoba. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Centro de Investigaciones en Química Biológica de Córdoba; ArgentinaFil: González, Paola Solange. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; ArgentinaFil: Agostini, Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba; Argentin

Glutathione, a key compound for As accumulation and tolerance in soybean plants treated with AsV and AsIII

Despite soybean (Glycine max L.) is often cultivated in areas contaminated with arsenic (As) which causes deleterious effects on its growth, little is known about tolerance mechanisms in response to As exposure. In particular, glutathione (GSH) (γ-glutamyl-cysteinyl-glycine) has antioxidant properties and is precursor of phytochelatin (PCs) synthesis, thus its role in As-treated plants would be relevant. We proposed to assess the GSH role in the response to arsenate (AsV) and arsenite (AsIII) in soybean plants using BSO (L-buthionine-sulfoximine), an inhibitor of its synthesis. BSO treatment was efficient to reduce GSH production in roots and leaves. However, GSH reduction was lower in As/BSO-treated plants compared to control/BSO-treated plants, which suggests an As-induced activation of its synthesis. As a consequence, a decrease in PCs content and PC:As ratio in roots was observed. In addition, a reduction of antioxidant activity, including ascorbate and glutathione peroxidase activity, was detected under BSO treatment, which resulted in an increase of membrane damage and root cell death. Also, low GSH content increased inhibitory effects of As on gas exchange and PSII yield, which could explain the reduction in aerial parts biomass, mainly under AsIII-treatment. BSO-exposure also caused a significant decrease of As accumulation in roots, although increased its translocation to leaves. Our findings suggest that GSH regulated As stress tolerance in soybean plants through complex mechanisms, including redox balance, gas exchange and changes in As accumulation pattern.Instituto de Fisiología y Recursos Genéticos VegetalesFil: Vezza, Mariana Elisa. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Luna, Dario Fernando. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Fisiología y Recursos Genéticos Vegetales; ArgentinaFil: Agostini, Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Talano, Melina Andrea. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Remediación biológica de mercurio: Recientes avances

Mercury (Hg) is a highly toxic heavy metal that threatens human health and environment. It is found naturally as inorganic and organic forms and all are toxic, especially the latter, due to its high lipid solubility, which facilitates their biomagnification in the food chain. Due to the high risks that represent the Hg-contaminated environments, there is a need to efficiently treat them. Among environmental restoration strategies, the biological remediation is a promising technology, which comprises the bio-, phyco-, phyto- and rhizoremediation. Thus, the purpose of this review was to compilate the main aspects concerning to biological remediation of Hg, emphasizing the most recent developments, in order to contribute to the understanding of the mechanisms involved in it and the aspects that still need to be investigated. Thereby, in this review we describe the different mechanisms implicated and the capacity for Hg and methylmercury removal by bacteria, fungi, algae, plants and rhizospheric microorganisms. In addition, it describes the results using transgenic plants, which have been obtained to improve the removal process of this metal. For decades, numerous investigation involving bacterial bioremediation and phytoremediation of Hg have been developed. However, the use of fungi and algae for this purpose are less explored areas. More recently, new areas into the Hg-biological remediation are being studied, such as the rhizoremediation and the use of transgenic plants, which need to be further studied in order to elucidate its biotechnological potential. The application of these systems to treat industrial effluents and/or environments contaminated with Hg is also discussed.Fil: Paisio, Cintia Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud; ArgentinaFil: González, Paola Solange. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular. Sección Química Biológica; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Talano, Melina Andrea. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología Molecular. Sección Química Biológica; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Agostini, Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Biotecnología Ambiental y Salud; Argentin