The Content of Heavy Metals in Medicinal Plants in Various Environmental Conditions: A Review

There is no author summary for this article yet. Authors can add summaries to their articles on ScienceOpen to make them more accessible to a non-specialist audience.

Abstract

Nowadays people are becoming poisoned through the consumption of herbal remedies that comprise heavy metals (HMs) worldwide. It is possible for HMs to be present in pharmaceutical herb materials coming from anthropogenic activities like agriculture, industrial waste, and natural sources. In various ethnic groups, there is evidence that contaminants were purposefully added in the belief that they had some sort of therapeutic benefit. HM toxicity of medicinal plant products has been linked to a wide range of adverse health effects, causing dysfunction of the liver, kidney, and heart, and even death. Natural plant-based products established around the world have progressed to the point that they now combine a variety of synthetic products for their purported medical benefits. This assessment focuses on the impacts of HMs on plants, sources of HMs, herbal sample collection, and identification techniques, especially in medicinal plant samples. At the same time, it focuses on the sociocultural applications of HMs as well as the dangers associated with their usage in conventional therapies. It is necessary to implement appropriate regulation and monitoring systems for natural supplements due to the prevalence of hazardous HMs.

Related collections

Most cited references 59

Record: found
Abstract: found
Article: not found

Oxidative modifications to cellular components in plants.

Ian Møller, Poul Jensen, Andreas Hansson (2007)

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS) are produced in many places in living cells and at an increased rate during biotic or abiotic stress. ROS and RNS participate in signal transduction, but also modify cellular components and cause damage. We first look at the most common ROS and their properties. We then consider the ways in which the cell can regulate their production and removal. We critically assess current knowledge about modifications of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), DNA, carbohydrates, and proteins and illustrate this knowledge with case stories wherever possible. Some oxidative breakdown products, e.g., from PUFA, can cause secondary damage. Other oxidation products are secondary signaling molecules. We consider the fate of the modified components, the energetic costs to the cell of replacing such components, as well as strategies to minimize transfer of oxidatively damaged components to the next generation.

0 comments Cited 375 times – based on 0 reviews      Review now

Bookmark

Record: found
Abstract: not found
Article: not found

Molecular Mechanism of Heavy Metal Toxicity and Tolerance in Plants: Central Role of Glutathione in Detoxification of Reactive Oxygen Species and Methylglyoxal and in Heavy Metal Chelation

Mohammad Anwar Hossain, Pukclai Piyatida, Jaime A. Teixeira da Silva … (2012)

0 comments Cited 168 times – based on 0 reviews      Review now

Bookmark

Record: found
Abstract: found
Article: not found

The biochemistry of environmental heavy metal uptake by plants: implications for the food chain.

Jose R. Peralta-Videa, Martha Laura López, Mahesh Narayan … (2009)

Plants absorb a number of elements from soil, some of which have no known biological function and some are known to be toxic at low concentrations. As plants constitute the foundation of the food chain, some concerns have been raised about the possibility of toxic concentrations of certain elements being transported from plants to higher strata of the food chain. Special attention has been given to the uptake and biotransformation mechanisms occurring in plants and its role in bioaccumulation and impact on consumers, especially human beings. While this review draws particular attention to metal accumulation in edible plants, researched studies of certain wild plants and their consumers are included. Furthermore, this review focuses on plant uptake of the toxic elements arsenic, cadmium, chromium, mercury, and lead and their possible transfer to the food chain. These elements were selected because they are well-established as being toxic for living systems and their effects in humans have been widely documented. Arsenic is known to promote cancer of the bladder, lung, and skin and can be acquired, for example, through the consumption of As-contaminated rice. Cadmium can attack kidney, liver, bone, and it also affects the female reproduction system. Cadmium also can be found in rice. Chromium can produce cancer, and humans can be exposed through smoking and eating Cr-laden vegetables. Lead and mercury are well known neurotoxins that can be consumed via seafood, vegetables and rice.