Chromium (Cr) is a toxic metal usually found in soil and water, causing environmental pollution. Silicon (Si), however, has excelled in alleviating the stress caused by toxic elements in plants, and its beneficial role was mainly based on external and internal plant mechanisms. This study investigates whether and how Si influences the alleviation of Cr toxicity in wheat at the physiological and biochemical levels. The addition of Si in Cr-stressed plants significantly improved morpho-physiological characteristics, total protein, and membrane stability compared to Cr-stressed plants, suggesting that Si does have critical roles in Cr detoxification in wheat. Furthermore, Si supplementation in Cr-stressed plants showed a significant increase of Cr in roots but not in shoots compared with the plants grown under Cr stress. The addition of Si in Cr stress the raised the total chlorophyll (a and b) compared to non-treated controls. Beside this, abiotic stress indicators, such as cell death, electrolyte leakage and total soluble protein remarkably improved subjected to Si under Cr stress. These improvements are in accordance with the significant decrease of Cr in both root and shoot due to Si under Cr stress. Furthermore, Si application enhanced non-enzymatic scavenging and proline concentration to reduce Cr-induced oxidative damage in wheat. These findings reveal the role of Si on Cr detoxification in wheat and can be further implemented as a fertilization strategy.

中文翻译：

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通过硅减轻小麦（Triticum aestivum L.）中铬的毒性

铬（Cr）是一种有毒金属，通常存在于土壤和水中，会造成环境污染。但是，硅（Si）在缓解植物中有毒元素引起的胁迫方面表现出色，其有益作用主要基于植物内部和外部的机制。这项研究从生理和生化的角度研究了硅是否以及如何影响小麦对铬毒性的缓解。与Cr胁迫植物相比，在Cr胁迫植物中添加Si可以显着改善形态生理特性，总蛋白质和膜稳定性，这表明Si在小麦中Cr的解毒中起着关键作用。此外，与在Cr胁迫下生长的植物相比，在Cr胁迫的植物中添加硅表明根部的Cr显着增加，而芽中的Cr没有显着增加。a和 b）与未治疗的对照相比。除此之外，在Cr胁迫下，Si使非生物胁迫指标（如细胞死亡，电解质渗漏和总可溶性蛋白）显着提高。这些改善与根系和枝条中Cr引起的Si中Cr的显着减少是一致的。此外，硅的施用增强了非酶清除和脯氨酸的浓度，从而减少了铬引起的小麦氧化损伤。这些发现揭示了硅对小麦中铬排毒的作用，并可作为施肥策略进一步实施。