AOBPreview originally published online on November 30, 2005
Annals of Botany 2006 97(2):257-263; doi:10.1093/aob/mcj026
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Detoxification of Dissolved SO2 (Bisulfite) by Terricolous Mosses
1 Department of Crop Physiology, Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat-785013, Assam, India and 2 Division of Biology, Imperial College London, Silwood Park Campus, Ascot, Berkshire SL5 7PY, UK
* For correspondence. E-mail j.bates{at}imperial.ac.uk
Received: 15 July 2005 Returned for revision: 19 September 2005 Accepted: 21 October 2005 Published electronically: 30 November 2005
Background and Aims The widespread calcifuge moss Pleurozium schreberi is moderately tolerant of SO2, whereas Rhytidiadelphus triquetrus is limited to calcareous soils in regions of the UK that were strongly affected by SO2 pollution in the 20th century. The proposition that tolerance of SO2 by these terricolous mosses depends on metabolic detoxification of dissolved bisulfite was investigated.
Methods The capacities of the two mosses to accelerate loss of bisulfite from aqueous solutions of NaHSO3 were studied using DTNB [5, 5-dithio-(2-nitrobenzoic acid)] to assay bisulfite, and HPLC to assay sulfate in the incubation solutions. Incubations were performed for different durations, in the presence and absence of light, at a range of solution pH values, in the presence of metabolic inhibitors and with altered moss apoplastic Ca2+ and Fe3+ levels.
Key Results Bisulfite disappearance was markedly stimulated in the light and twice as great for R. triquetrus as for P. schreberi. DCMU, an inhibitor of photosynthetic electron chain transport, significantly reduced bisufite loss.
Conclusions Bisulfite (SO2) tolerance in these terricolous mosses involves extracellular oxidation using metabolic (photo-oxidative) energy, passive oxidation by adsorbed Fe3+ (only available to the calcifuge) and probably also internal metabolic detoxification.
Key words: Pleurozium schreberi, Rhytidiadelphus triquetrus, SO2 pollution, bisulfite, detoxification, Ca2+, Fe3+, oxidative metabolism