Abstract

Industrial development has caused the contamination of the environment, leading to biodiversity loss and human health concerns. The use of native plants and/or their associated microbiota is a sustainable solution for reducing or transforming contaminants into less harmful forms. This study was conducted to evaluate the remedial potential of Uroclhoa mosambincensis in soils contaminated with arsenic. In a greenhouse experiment, seedlings of U. mosambincensis were divided into four treatments of increasing arsenic concentration. It was found out that in U. mosambicensis, although most physiological parameters were affected, in 200 mg.kg^-1 arsenic trioxide concentration (As₂O₃) an increase in 23.3% of leaf biomass was observed. Chlorophyll A was not significantly affected by the presence of arsenic. It was also verified that the increase in arsenic concentration stimulated the removal of arsenic from soil to plant tissues at a percentage of 10.8, 27.7 and 30.2 higher in each treatment. This indicates the arsenic accumulator character of U. mosambicensis and its potential use for remediation of soils contaminated with arsenic.

Key words: Accumulation, arsenic trioxide, metalloid, phytoremediation.