[Tobacco cadmium health risk assessment and reduction techniques: A review].

Tobacco is one of the cadmium accumulation and tolerance plants. Decreasing cadmium content of tobacco contributes to environmental safety and human health. Three aspects on tobacco cadmium research were reviewed in this paper, i.e. uptake and distribution of cadmium in tobacco, and health risk assessment of cadmium in tobacco and reduction measures. The current situations and existing challenges in the research field were discussed. The cadmium tolerance mechanisms of tobacco were reviewed, the factors on cadmium uptake were analyzed, and the general distribution of cadmium in tobacco was summarized. From the point of health risk assessment, the lack of cadmium limits in tobacco was identified, the recommended formula to calculate cadmium limits of tobacco based on atmosphere cadmium limits and digestion cadmium limits was provided and the cadmium limits of tobacco were estimated using each formula, and suggestions on cadmium limits in tobacco were presented. At last, we put forward several effective reduction measures to lower cadmium level in tobacco leaves.

[Toxicity and accumulation of copper and nickel in wheat plants cropped on alkaline and acidic field soils].

Field experiments were conducted to study the toxicity of added copper (Cu) and nickel (Ni) in soils to wheat and metal accumulation in wheat plants. The results showed that the yields of wheat straw and grain were decreased with the increasing concentration of Cu and Ni added to soils. The added Cu concentrations yielding 10% inhibition of wheat yield (EC10) were 499.6 mg x kg(-1) for alkaline soils (Dezhou, pH 8.90), and 55.7 mg x kg(-1) for acidic soils (Qiyang, pH 5.31). The toxicity of Cu or Ni in acidic soils were significantly higher than that in alkaline soils. With increasing addition of Cu or Ni, the contents of Cu in wheat grains initially increased and then keep at constant level, while the accumulation of Ni in grains linearly increased. The contents of Cu and Ni in Qiyang wheat grains were 6.07-9.26 mg x kg(-1) and 0.53-31.78 mg x kg(-1), and those of in Dezhou were 5.24-10. 52 mg x kg(-1) and 0.16-25.33 mg x kg(-1). In both field experimental sites, the contents of Cu in wheat grains meet the national standard for food safety. These findings showed that Cu is more relevant to ecological risk assessments than to food safety assessments for wheat grown in soils that have been contaminated with Cu.

[In situ immobilization remediation of heavy metals-contaminated soils: a review].

In situ immobilization of heavy metals in contaminated soils by adding extraneous active amendments has been considered as a cost-effective measure for contaminated soil remediation. Application of immobilization amendments can decrease the available fractions of heavy metals or change their redox states, and thus, effectively decrease the mobility, bioavailability, and toxicity of the heavy metals in soils. This paper summarized the present researches about the in situ immobilization of heavy metals in soils, including kinds of immobilization amendments, research methods, immobilization indexes, immobilization mechanisms, and relevant environmental risk assessment. The mostly applied amendments include clay minerals, phosphates, organic composts, and microbes. Due to the complexity of soil matrix and the limitations of current analytical techniques, the exact immobilization mechanisms have not been clarified, which could include precipitation, chemical adsorption and ion exchange, surface precipitation, formation of stable complexes with organic ligands, and redox reaction. The prospects and limitations of in situ immobilization of heavy metals in soils were discussed. Future work should focus on the elucidation of immobilization mechanisms at molecular scale, with specific attention be paid to the potential risks of applying immobilization amendments and its long-term effects on field soils.