ABSTRACT
Various anthropogenic sources such as steel factories, pharmaceutical and catalytic industries, phosphatic and potassium fertilizers and burning of fossil fuels have considerably increased the vanadium levels in the environment, leading to soil contamination. The high vanadium concentration in the soil increases the translocation of vanadium into plants, consequently increasing the potential of its entry into the food chain. Vanadium toxicity can have deleterious effects on plant, animal and human health. Although low vanadium concentrations have been reported to positively influence plant growth and yield, there is not enough evidence to categorize vanadium as an essential or beneficial element for plants. High vanadium levels are toxic to plants, causing, among other effects, stunted growth, reduction in chlorophyll content, low protein production and reactive oxygen species (ROS) overproduction. The molecular mechanism of vanadium toxicity also interferes with the uptake of nutrients like P, Zn, Ca, Cu and Mn. The translocation of vanadium to shoots is limited and is generally sequestered in the roots in most of the plants, except in a few potential hyperaccumulators. The differential translocation in various plant species is due to the presence of varied transporter gene families in different plant species. There is limited available information on these transporter genes, and this needs to be studied for a better understanding of vanadium translocation and identification of vanadium hyperaccumulators. Phytoremediation strategies such as phytoextraction and phytostabilization might be useful for the remediation of vanadium contaminated soils.
