Sensibilidade in vitro de plantas de batata ao cádmio

Abstract

The potato is the third most important crop for human consumption and the most produced tuber in the world. With that, there is a huge concern for potato cultivation in soils contaminated with heavy metals, such as cadmium (Cd), which is an extremely toxic element and harmful to human health. Therefore, the objective of this study was to investigate the sensitivity of potato plants to the addition of Cd to the culture medium. The experiments were carried out at the Tissue Culture Laboratory of the Center of Plant Breeding and Vegetative Propagation. The clones SMIJ461-1, SMINIA793101-3, SMINIA00017-6, SMIG 227-1, and the potato cultivars ‘Vivaldi’ and ‘Asterix’ were studied. The Cd concentrations added to the culture medium and evaluation time of the plants of clone SMIJ461-1 were defined. Survival rates, rooting percentages, shoot height, and the number of leaves and roots at 7, 14, 21, and 28 days and catalase enzyme activity at 28 days of in vitro cultivation were evaluated. The results demonstrated adverse effects between Cd concentrations on the in vitro growth of SMIJ461plants for all evaluated traits, and these effects depend on the Cd concentration in the culture medium. The concentrations of 0, 45, 90, and 135 μM of Cd in the culture medium should be used for the in vitro evaluation of potato clones’ sensitivity to Cd at 14 days of cultivation. The plants’ sensitivity of the six potato clones indicated that adding these Cd concentrations to the culture medium positively and negatively affected all traits of clones evaluated at 14 days of cultivation. ‘Asterix’, ‘Vivaldi’, SMIG227-1, and SMINIA00017-6 also showed significant changes in catalase enzyme activity, with ‘Asterix’ showing an increase in enzyme activity. Therefore, it is concluded that the potato clones studied are sensitive to the presence of Cd in the culture medium. This study aims to contribute to the selection of potato clones that have low or no Cd accumulation in tubers.