RESUMO
Rice plants are known to be more susceptible to arsenic (As) contamination during the cultivation process. Arsenic is genotoxic and can be a big threat to the rice eating people at large. Studies on an effective mitigation mechanism are the need of the hour. This work was an approach using iron (Fe3+) to form Fe-plaque in the plant root that could trap As. The present research was designed with several experimental set ups for rice cultivation in pot culture using different Fe doses with fertilizer in the soil, and finally, the optimum dose was selected considering the translocation ability, plant health, and molecular and stress biomarkers. The study revealed that on an increase in Fe dose, translocation factor (TF) and stress marker (malondialdehyde content) of the plant decreased gradually and encountered minimum (0.12 and 0.03 mg/kg, respectively) at the dose of 4.5gm/kg. In contrast, higher values of chlorophyll (2.5 mg/kg) and carbohydrate (2.2 mg/kg) and intact DNA content were recorded highlighting the rich health condition of the plant. Thus, the experiment supported well the fact that the dose of Fe as fortified fertilizer can be considered the most effective in reducing soil arsenic accumulation in the rice plants. This approach might save the rice eating people from harmful effects of As contamination in this region of India.
