The Effect of Copper and Lead Ions on Growth and Lipid Composition of the Fern Matteuccia sthruthiopteris

In the present study, the effect of copper (Cu2+) and lead (PbCu2+) ions on the growth and lipid composition of various parts of the fern, Matteuccia sthruthiopteris, was examined. Plants were incubated in the presence or absence of 1, 10, 100 mu M of Cu(NO3)(2) or Pb(NO3)(2). Cu2+ and Pb2+ ions at concentrations of 1 and 10 mu M caused an increased growth of the roots and leaves. A higher concentration of Pb2+ did not show any effect on growth, whereas that of Cu2+ slowed down the growth of the whole plants. The roots accumulated more than 700 mu g of Cu2+ and 400 mu g of Pb2+ per 1 g dry weight when the plants were incubated with the higher concentrations of metals, whereas in the leaves the concentration of Cu2+ was much lower and did not exceed 12 mu g/g dry weight. No accumulation of Pb2+ ions by leaves was detected. The lipid composition of photosynthetic leave tissues was shown to be affected by the presence of metal ions in the root medium at either concentration studied. Various changes in lipid classes were noted as responsive reactions of M. sthruthiopteris to the heavy metal ions in nutrient medium. Cu2+ ions decreased the content of total lipids, total phospholipids, and individual phosphatidyl-cholines and phosphatidylethanolamines, whereas Pb2+ ions caused a decrease in the content of total lipids and glycolipids. Changes in the lipid composition were more pronounced in the mature leaves than in the scrolls of the studied fern.