EFFECTS OF ARSENIC AND THEIR MITIGATION IN PLANTS

Arsenic is a metalloid - a natural element that is not actually a metal but which has both the properties of a metal and a non metal. It is a natural component of the Earth?s crust, generally found in trace quantities in all rock, soil, water and air. However, concentrations may be higher in certain areas due to either natural conditions or human activities. Soil contaminants?organic like petroleum, hydro-carbon, fertilizer, pesticide, copper, nickel cobalt zinc , Inorganic like arsenic cadmium, mercury, lead,Arsenic (As) is posing a serious health concern in West Bengal in India. Long term Arsenic exposure leads to skin lesions and various types of cancers. Safe level of As in drinking water is10 μg l-1, as recommended by World Health Organization in 1993, while the level of As in ground water has been reported up to 3200 μg l-1 in West Bengal. The total daily intake should not exceed 2 mg of inorganic arsenic per kilogram of body weight .Arsenic is non-essential element for plant and present in environment both in inorganic as well as organic forms. Arsenate (AsV) and arsenite (AsIII) are predominant inorganic forms. As toxicity symptoms in plants range from inhibition of root growth, photosynthesis to death of plant Arsenate shows structural analogy with phosphate so it is mainly transported through high affinity phosphate transporters