Biologia plantarum 53:214-222, 2009 | DOI: 10.1007/s10535-009-0042-y
Interactions of lichens with heavy metals
- 1 Institute of Biology and Ecology, Department of Botany, �af�rik University, Ko�ice, Slovak Republic
- 2 Department of Environmental Science, G. Sarfatti University of Siena, Siena, Italy
Recent developments in knowledge about the interactions between lichens and heavy metals at different levels, from populations to cells and from ecology to molecular biology are reviewed. Sources of heavy metals, mechanisms of heavy metal accumulation and detoxification by lichens are discussed. Special emphasis is placed on ultrastructural changes as well as physiological parameters such as membrane integrity, pigment composition, chlorophyll a fluorescence, photosynthesis, respiration, contents of ATP, amino acids, ergosterol, ethylene, non-protein thiols, activity of antioxidant enzymes and expression of stress proteins.
Keywords: biomonitoring; cadmium; copper; detoxification; exclusion; lead; manganese; mercury; zinc
Subjects: heavy metals; lichen
Received: June 10, 2008; Accepted: December 2, 2008; Published: June 1, 2009 Show citation
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