Surface Electrical Potentials of Root Cell Plasma Membranes: Implications for Ion Interactions, Rhizotoxicity, and Uptake

Many crop plants are exposed to heavy metals and other metals that may intoxicate the crop plants themselves or consumers of the plants. The rhizotoxicity of heavy metals is influenced strongly by the root cell plasma membrane (PM) surface’s electrical potential (ψ(0)). The usually negative ψ(0) is created by negatively charged constituents of the PM. Cations in the rooting medium are attracted to the PM surface and anions are repelled. Addition of ameliorating cations (e.g., Ca(2+) and Mg(2+)) to the rooting medium reduces the effectiveness of cationic toxicants (e.g., Cu(2+) and Pb(2+)) and increases the effectiveness of anionic toxicants (e.g., SeO(4)(2−) and H(2)AsO(4)(−)). Root growth responses to ions are better correlated with ion activities at PM surfaces ({I(Z)}(0)) than with activities in the bulk-phase medium ({I(Z)}(b)) (I(Z) denotes an ion with charge Z). Therefore, electrostatic effects play a role in heavy metal toxicity that may exceed the role of site-specific competition between toxicants and ameliorants. Furthermore, ψ(0) controls the transport of ions across the PM by influencing both {I(Z)}(0) and the electrical potential difference across the PM from the outer surface to the inner surface (E(m,surf)). E(m,surf) is a component of the driving force for ion fluxes across the PM and controls ion-channel voltage gating. Incorporation of {I(Z)}(0) and E(m,surf) into quantitative models for root metal toxicity and uptake improves risk assessments of toxic metals in the environment. These risk assessments will improve further with future research on the application of electrostatic theory to heavy metal phytotoxicity in natural soils and aquatic environments.