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BIOSORPTION OF Hg: I. SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT WITH MARINE GREEN ALGAE IN THE ANATOMY OF HYPOCOTYL OF TRIGONELLA FOENUMGRAECUM UNDER Hg STRESS

SHABANA ASKARI¹, FAHIM UDDIN² AND RAFIA AZMAT^*3

Abstract: Biosorption of mercury (Hg) on marine green algae, Codium iyengrii was observed in relation with seed germination, morphology of plant and anatomy of hypocotyls of Trigonella foenumgraecum. Results were compared with plants grown in garden soil as a control plant to that of Hg and seaweeds treated plants. Adverse affect of Hg was observed on root hairs, which was retained in presence of seaweeds too. However a significant improvement in tissue structure of vascular bundles was pragmatic and anatomy of hypocotyls reached to normal plant structure at 10ppm, showing the removal of Hg through biosorption on Codium iyengrii. This indicates that seaweeds correct the soil condition by supplying macro and micronutrients which develop resistance in plants in stress of heavy metal by adsorbing mercury on surface of seaweeds due to metal and ligand interaction.

¹Department of Botany and ^2-3Department of Chemistry

^1,3Jinnah University for Women 5C Nazimabad 74600 Karachi. Pakistan

²University of Karachi, Karachi, Pakistan.

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