Pulse Brain · Growing Health Evidence Index
Tier 4 — Narrative / commentaryPeer-reviewed

Heavy metals toxicity in plants: understanding mechanisms and developing coping strategies for remediation: a review.

Mohamed HI, Ullah I, Toor MD, Tanveer NA, Din MMU, Basit A, Sultan Y, Muhammad M, Rehman MU.

Bioresour Bioprocess · 2025

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Summary

This review examines the mechanisms by which heavy metals (cadmium, lead, chromium and others) accumulate in plants and induce physiological stress, with emphasis on understanding toxicity pathways. The authors synthesise evidence on remediation and coping strategies, likely including phytoremediation, soil conditioning, and agronomic interventions to reduce plant uptake and human dietary exposure.

UK applicability

UK soils in industrial and urban areas can contain elevated heavy metals; findings would be relevant to horticultural production systems and food safety assurance in contaminated sites. The remediation strategies reviewed may inform UK soil remediation policy and guidance for producers in affected regions.

Key measures

Heavy metal accumulation in plant tissues; plant stress responses and toxicity mechanisms; effectiveness of remediation approaches (phytoremediation, soil amendments, agronomic practices)

Outcomes reported

The review synthesises current understanding of how heavy metals accumulate in plants, the physiological mechanisms of toxicity, and evaluated remediation and mitigation strategies. The paper likely assessed multiple approaches to reducing heavy metal uptake and soil contamination across different agricultural and horticultural contexts.

Theme
Farming systems, soils & land use
Subject
Soil contaminants, plant physiology and food production safety
Study type
Narrative Review
Study design
Narrative review
Source type
Peer-reviewed study
Status
Published
Geography
Global
System type
Horticulture
DOI
10.1186/s40643-025-00930-4
Catalogue ID
NRmo3d4gae-07v

Topic tags

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