Genotypic Contribution of Lentil to Arsenate and Phosphorus Uptake.

Arsenic contamination of groundwater, surface water and land is a pressing public health issue worldwide.  Arsenic can be taken up from soil by plants and accumulate in vegetative and reproductive plant tissues where they pose a human health threat through consumption, inhalation or touch. Different plant species and genotypes have varying abilities to detoxify, sequester or remove arsenic from their cells. A common mechanism contributing to low arsenic uptake in crops is the shutdown of phosphate transporters designed to function in low soil P conditions (“high affinity phosphate transporters”).  The studies described here sought to address cultivar variation in for arsenic uptake in lentils and the relationship of that to phosphorus. Lentils (Lens culinaris) are important source of dietary fiber worldwide especially in the Middle East, Asia, and North Africa. Fifty-seven lentil genotypes from the NPRS lentil core collection and elite breeding lines from the ARS grain legume breeding program were tested for their response to repeated sub-lethal doses of arsenate. Most of the lines experience da marked reduction in biomass and height that was accompanied by arsenic accumulation in the biomass. Several lines that were less impacted were identified. These cultivar differences for arsenic uptake will be investigated further for arsenic partitioning to the grain and their relationship to phosphorus uptake efficiency.