Evaluation of Cadmium Effects on Six Solanum melongena L. Cultivars from the Mediterranean Basin

Edgardo Filippone, Valentina Tranchida-Lombardo, Alessia Vitiello, Fabrizio Ruiu, Mina Di Salvatore, Teresa Rosa Galise, Lucrezia Laccetti, Angela Amoresano, Gennaro D’Ambrosio, Luigi Frusciante, Giovanni Scopece and Pasquale Chiaiese
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Edgardo Filippone: Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Via Università 100, 80055 Portici, Italy
Valentina Tranchida-Lombardo: National Research Council of Italy, Institute of Biosciences and Bioresources (CNR-IBBR), Via Università 133, 80055 Portici, Italy
Alessia Vitiello: Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Via Università 100, 80055 Portici, Italy
Fabrizio Ruiu: Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Via Università 100, 80055 Portici, Italy
Mina Di Salvatore: Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Via Università 100, 80055 Portici, Italy
Teresa Rosa Galise: Department of Biology, University of Naples Federico II, 80126 Naples, Italy
Lucrezia Laccetti: Department of Biology, University of Naples Federico II, 80126 Naples, Italy
Angela Amoresano: Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Via Cinthia, 21, 80126 Naples, Italy
Gennaro D’Ambrosio: Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Via Università 100, 80055 Portici, Italy
Luigi Frusciante: Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Via Università 100, 80055 Portici, Italy
Giovanni Scopece: Department of Biology, University of Naples Federico II, 80126 Naples, Italy
Pasquale Chiaiese: Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Via Università 100, 80055 Portici, Italy

Agriculture, 2022, vol. 12, issue 7, 1-20

Abstract: Cadmium (Cd) contamination is a severe problem in the environment and produces detrimental effects on crop productivity and quality. Characterization of crop performance at different Cd concentrations is crucial to identify pollution-safe cultivars with low translocation efficiency to aboveground organs to be used for food safety. Here, we estimated germination, survival, growth, photosynthetic pigments, Cd bioaccumulation, among-organs translocation, and ionic balance in six Solanum melongena L. (eggplant) cultivars from the central Mediterranean basin. On two cultivars, we also analyzed expression of genes involved in Cd uptake, i.e., heavy metal ATPases ( HMA s) and metal tolerance proteins ( MTP s). We found that Cd has a negative effect on all the investigated parameters but with relevant among-cultivar differences. Cd-treated plants showed a decrease in germination rate and survival. Photosynthetic pigments showed opposite trends, i.e., with increasing Cd contents, we observed a decrease in chlorophylls and an increase in carotenoids. The investigated cultivars showed high ability of sequestrating Cd in roots but a low translocation efficiency to the aboveground organs, suggesting a good potential for food safety. The response of plants to Cd was mediated by a different expression of the MTP and HMA gene families. Our study represents the first comprehensive investigation of Cd tolerance in eggplant varieties from the Mediterranean basin and highlights the importance of comparative studies to identify Cd-tolerant cultivars.

Keywords: bioaccumulation; eggplant; physiological responses; tolerance; trace metals (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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