MONITORING OF DISTRIBUTION OF TOXIC AND ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS AT THE SOIL-ROOT INTERFACE BY SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPE AND ENERGY DISPERSIVE X-RAY MICROANALYSIS (SEM-EDX)

G. Cieslinski, L.J. Veto, G.H. Neilsen
Growing interest in translocation of mineral nutrients and toxic elements from soil into the food chain has focused much attention on the biology and chemistry of the soil-root interface (rhizosphere). Scanning electron microscope (SEM) coupled with energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis (EDX) was used to localize Cd, Ca, Si, and S in root tissue of one-year old apple trees cv. Fuji/M9 grown in the greenhouse under different soil pH and soil Cd-concentrations. Frozen-hydrated, fractured root samples with rhizosphere soil adhering to the root surface were examined in a JEOL 840A SEM and Image Analysis by X-ray digital elemental mapping. A long acquisition time (14 h) allowed for reliable multicoloured X-ray images which mapped the location of Cd relative to other examined elements. Cd was located mostly in dense granules in the cytoplasm and vacuoles with some located in the cell walls. Moreover, the digital images of cross-sectioned roots showed that Cd shared intercellular sites with silica (Si). This could imply the possible role for Si in Cd acquisition by plants.
Cieslinski, G., Veto, L.J. and Neilsen, G.H. (1997). MONITORING OF DISTRIBUTION OF TOXIC AND ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS AT THE SOIL-ROOT INTERFACE BY SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPE AND ENERGY DISPERSIVE X-RAY MICROANALYSIS (SEM-EDX). Acta Hortic. 448, 255-255
DOI: 10.17660/ActaHortic.1997.448.38
https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.1997.448.38

Acta Horticulturae