Abstract: A hydroponic experiment was conducted to study the cadmium (Cd) accumulation in different eggplant cultivars (common Solanum melongena and wild S. torvum) and the effects of grafting on the Cd accumulation and transportation. 0.1 mg Cd·L^-1 was added to the nutrient solution for 7 days after 44 days of eggplant growth. The Cd accumulation in S. melongena was higher than that in S. torvum. The Cd concentrations in different parts of the eggplants ranked as root > leaf > stem, and the accumulated Cd in roots accounted for approximately 80.0% of the total. The Cd concentration accumulated in young leaves was higher than that in old leaves growing on the same stems. Grafting decreased the Cd accumulation in shoots significantly, and the Cd concentration in scions was significantly lower than that in rootstocks. As compared with S. melongena, grafting on S. torvum reduced the shoot Cd concentration by 48.4%, grafting on S. melongena reduced the shoot Cd concentration by 34.2%, while selfgrafting on S. torvum reduced the shoot Cd concentration by 88.5%. As compared with S. torvum, the shoot Cd concentration of the eggplants selfgrafted on S. torvum reduced by 58.0%. The decrease of the Cd accumulation in eggplant shoots due to grafting could be induced by the discrepancies between the phloem structure of rootstock and scion plants after grafting. It was speculated that phloem played an important role in the Cd transportation from root to shoot.

Key words: β-glucan, Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, distribution characteristics., cultivated barley