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cje ›› 2009, Vol. 28 ›› Issue (11): 2374-2380.

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Iron plaques on wetland plant root surface: A review.

YAO Hai-xing;YE Zhi-hong   

  1. State Key Laboratory for Biocontrol, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat sen University, Guangzhou 510006, China
  • Online:2009-11-10 Published:2009-11-10

Abstract: Wetland plants have a series of physiological and anatomical characteristics to adapt flooding habitat, e.g., their root aerenchyma and oxygen penetrating capability can make the rhizospheric micro-environment be under oxidation condition, resulting in the formation of Fe/Mn plaques on root surface. Soil Fe and Mn and the microenvironment oxidation condition are the two important prerequisites for the formation of the Fe/Mn plaques. The plaques are mainly composed of Fe-and-Mn-oxides and their hydrates, which can alter the forms of heavy metals and nutrients in rhizospheric micro-environment via the actions absorption-desorption, oxidation-reduction, and organic-inorganic chelation, etc., and thereby, affect the bioavailability and the migration of pollutants and nutrients in wetland soil-plant system. This paper reviewed the researches about the formation and composition of Fe/Mn plaques on wetland plant root surface, and the effects of the plaques on the heavy metals and nutrients uptake by wetland plants. Some problems worthy to be further approached were discussed.

Key words: Forest, Ecological environment, Jinggang Mountain forest region