Arsenic Meets Its Match with This Mediterranean Plant

Researchers affiliated with the Université de Montréal, Canada discovered the neutralizing potential the white lupin plant has against the chemical element arsenic, providing a promising solution to decontaminating polluted soil.

“It would be interesting to use white lupin to contain arsenic around the plant’s roots to avoid any contamination of groundwaters or living entities,” says Adrien Frémont, a Ph.D. candidate in Biological Sciences at Université de Montréal. “It could be a solution to stabilize contamination and allow activities to be conducted on this soil.”

White lupine — a herbaceous plant originally cultivated in the Mediterranean region — has the ability to resist metal contaminated soils. Findings show that when in contact with the contaminating agent, the plant synthesizes phytochelatins which, in return, neutralize arsenite by creating complexes. The disabled contaminant finds its way into the vacuole, a type of large bag in the white lupin’s vegetal cell where toxic waste is stored. Since soil contamination through arsenic is a global bane, white lupin’s future as a detoxicating tool looks bright.