Phytotoxicity and oxidative stress of perfluorooctanesulfonate to two riparian plants: Acorus calamus and Phragmites communis

Abstract Despite previous efforts and the rapid progress on elucidating the impact of perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS) on the environment, its effects on riparian plants, a key component of aquatic ecosystems, are still poorly understood. A 48-day hydroponic experiment was carried out on two typical riparian species ( Acorus calamus and Phragmites communis ) to examine the toxic effects of PFOS on these plants. The results showed that, at high concentration (more than 10 mg L −1 ), PFOS could prevent chlorophyll accumulation (reduced by 13.7–22.2% at 10 mg L −1 PFOS and 22.4–30.0% at 50 mg L −1 PFOS for 48 days) and soluble protein synthesis (reduced by 2.3–9.0% at 10 mg L −1 PFOS and 10.6–26.8% at 50 mg L −1 PFOS for 48 days). Contrastingly, less than 1 mg L −1 of PFOS could induce chlorophyll accumulation (increased by 18.6% in A. calamus roots, 11.3% in A. calamus leaves, and 13.6% in P. communis roots at 1 mg L −1 PFOS for 3 days) and soluble protein synthesis (increased by 6.1% in A. calamus roots, 18.4% in A. calamus leaves, 9.7% in P. communis roots, 23.4% in P. communis stems, and 24.0% in P. communis leaves, at 1 mg L −1 PFOS for 6 days). In addition, PFOS led to oxidative stress, as revealed by the elevated concentrations of malonaldehyde and hydrogen peroxide, and reduced the activities of antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (reduced by 10.3% in P. communis stems at 50 mg L −1 PFOS for 48 days), catalase (reduced by 20.6–50.3% in test species at 50 mg L −1 PFOS for 48 days), and peroxidase (reduced by 24.9–37.7% in test species at 50 mg L −1 PFOS for 48 days). The biomarkers of both plants changed rapidly in the first half of the experiment (0–24 days) and stabilized in the second half of the experiment (24–48 days). The risk and related factors of PFOS on riparian plants were evaluated by using these biomarkers. Experiments showed that P. communis was more resistant to low concentration ( −1 ) of PFOS than A. calamus .