Induction of enzyme capacity in plants as a result of heavy metal toxicity: dose-response relations in Phaseolus vulgaris L., treated with zinc and cadmium.

Toxic doses of zinc and cadmium inhibit shoot growth but increase the capacity of several leaf enzymes in dwarf beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.). Both effects were studied as a function of the metal concentration applied to the plant. There was a linear relationship between the metal content of the primary leaf and the nutrient solution. When leaf metal content exceeded a toxic threshold value, shoot growth became inhibited and an increase in capacity of the following enzymes was measured in the leaf: glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, glutamate dehydrogenase, isocitrate dehydrogenase, malic enzyme, glutamate-oxaloacetate transminase, peroxidase. The threshold values were similar for growth inhibition as well as for enzyme capacity induction. Both effects were strongly correlated to each other, especially under conditions of toxic zinc treatment. Measurement of enzyme capacity might therefore provide a useful criterion for the evaluation of the phytotoxicity of soils, contaminated by zinc and/or cadmium.