Nopalea cochenillifera, a potential chromium (VI) hyperaccumulator plant.

Hexavalant chromium [Cr(VI)] tolerance and accumulation in in vitro grown Nopalea cochenillifera Salm. Dyck. plants was investigated. A micropropagation protocol was establish for a rapid multiplication of N. cochenillifera and [Cr(VI)] tolerance and accumulation was studied in in vitro grown cultures. Cr concentration was estimated by atomic absorption spectroscopy in roots and shoots to confirm plant's hyperaccumulation capacity. Plants showed tolerance up to 100 μM K(2)Cr(2)O(7) without any significant changes in root growth after 16 days treatment; whereas, chlorophyll content in plants treated with 1 and 10 μM K(2)Cr(2)O(7) were not so different than the control plant. The levels of lipid peroxidation and protein oxidation increased significantly (p < 0.01) with increasing concentration of chromium. Exposures of N. cochenillifera to lower concentrations of K(2)Cr(2)O(7) (≤ 10 μM) induced catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) significantly (p < 0.001) but higher concentrations of K(2)Cr(2)O(7) (>100 μM) inhibited the activities of CAT and SOD. Roots accumulated a maximum of 25,263.396 ± 1,722.672 mg Cr Kg(-1) dry weight (DW); while the highest concentration of Cr in N. cochenillifera shoots was 705.714 ± 32.324 mg Cr Kg(-1) DW. N. cochenillifera could be a prospective hyperaccumulator plant of Cr(VI) and a promising candidate for phytoremediation purposes.