Brief information about the project
(Project’s duration is 36 months, 2021-2023)
Project title: IRN AP09259945 «Potential of sweetpotatoes (Ipomoea batatas L.) for phytoremediation of plumbum in contaminated areas of southern Kazakhstan».
Kazakhstan has a territory of 2,724,900 km2, making it the ninth largest country in the world, about the same size as Western Europe [4]. Desertification of large areas is accompanied by soil pollution, surface and groundwater flooding and a decrease in total regional biological capacity [5]. As known, most of Kazakhstan was affected by the activities of the nuclear test site, which was located on the territory of three regions: the East Kazakhstan, Karaganda and Pavlodar regions [6]. Most of the waste comes from the mining and processing in the Aktobe, Pavlodar, Karaganda, East-Kazakhstan, Zhambul, West-Kazakhstan and Atyrau regions, which are engaged in the extraction of coal and ferrous metals. The land of the East-Kazakhstan region is contaminated with a combination of copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb) and arsenic (As). Soil pollution in the Karaganda region is caused by waste from the coal, mining and metallurgical industries. The main source of land pollution in the Kyzylorda region is the activities of oil companies that pollute the environment with heavy metals and oil products. Thus, the activities of mining, oil and metallurgical industries are the main cause of severe land pollution in the Central, Eastern and Western parts of Kazakhstan.
Also a big environmental problem are plants that actively worked in the USSR. One of these enterprises is Shymkent lead plant (modern name «Yuzhpolimetall»), which is currently does not working, and the amount of waste from it is 1 million 800 m3 and is a dump of lead sludge in the form of a mountain (popular name «Lead mountain»). Research on soil contamination around this plant has not been seriously carried out. The main methods for cleaning the soil from heavy metals are divided into: physico-chemical and biological. The use of physical and chemical methods of soil purification, namely washing, chemical oxidation and reduction, often leads to the accumulation of secondary pollutants and requires additional manipulations associated with the removal of contaminated soil cover and subsequent waste collection. Unlike physical and chemical methods, biological remediation uses living organisms (micro-organisms, algae, and plants). One of the most promising bioremediation areas today is the phytoremediation technology, which uses live plants. Phytoremediation, unlike microorganisms and algae, has the ability to absorb toxic heavy metals.
The search for effective methods of restoring technogenic polluted soils is an important environmental task in Kazakhstan. The urgency of the problem is related to the contamination of soils with heavy metals, in particular, in the area of metallurgical plants. Pollution of air, soil, plants and water with heavy metals near large industrial centers has become one of the most acute environmental problems.
Goal of the project: To select, test and study sweetpotato cultivars to high concentrations of lead in soil, as well as capable of accumulating lead in tissues for phytoremediation of contaminated areas of southern Kazakhstan.
Expected results:
The level of soil contamination by lead and other heavy metals by the Shymkent lead plant will be determined. At the in vitro level, at least 2 tolerance cultivars and at least 2 sensitive sweetpotato cultivars will be screened and selected for lead tolerance.
An assessment will be carried out under controlled conditions of tolerance of the selected cultivars to increased concentrations of lead and other heavy metals in the soil contaminated by the Shymkent lead plant.
The difference in spectrum of gene expression in tolerance and sensitive cultivars of sweet potato will be determined by comparative transcriptome analysis. Material will be obtained (harvest 2022) for biochemical analyzes for the presence of lead and other heavy metals in sweetpotato tissues.
Material (harvest 2023) will be obtained for biochemical analyzes for the presence of lead and other heavy metals in the tissues of sweetpotato.
Analysis will be conducted for the presence of lead and other heavy metals in the tissues of sweetpotato grown on contaminated soil with lead and other heavy metals.
Sweetpotato grown on contaminated soil with lead and other heavy metals will be processed into starch and other useful processed products. The resulting processed products will be analyzed for the presence of heavy metals.
The feasibility of extracting lead from sweet potatoes will be determined.
Scientific supervisor of the project:
Zhambakin Kabyl Zhaparovich, general director of IPBB, Doctor of Biological Science (specialty in Biotechnology), Professor (specialty in Biotechnology), Academician of KR NAS, h-index 3, 4 candidate dissertations and 3 PhD theses were defended under his supervision.
(https://www.scopus.com/authid/detail.uri?authorId=55331576800; https://app.webofknowledge.com/author/record/3844956)
Member in the research group:
Shamekova Malika Khabidulayevna: higher education (specialty in Animal Science), MSc (specialty in Agricultural Ecology), PhD (specialty in Ecology), Associated Professor (specialty in Biology), 15 years of research experience, fits the project profile, h-index 4, 1 PhD thesis was defended under her supervision.
(https://www.scopus.com/authid/detail.uri?authorId=55617198500; https://app.webofknowledge.com/author/record/4172091).
Daurov Dias Lamzarovich: BSc (specialty in Biotechnology), MSc (specialty in Biotechnology), 7 years of research experience, fits the project profile, h-index 1. (https://www.scopus.com/authid/detail.uri?origin=resultslist&authorId=57201666405&zone= ; https://app.webofknowledge.com/author/record/35819805?lang=ru_RU&SID=F5UIG1R9xCKg1bvOMMo)
Daurova Ainash Kenenbaevna: BSc (specialty in Biotechnology), MSc (specialty in Horticulture), 7 years of research experience, fits the project profile, h-index 1.
(https://www.scopus.com/authid/detail.uri?origin=AuthorProfile&authorId=57201673636&zone=; https://app.webofknowledge.com/author/record/10089321?lang=ru_RU&SID=F5UIG1R9xCKg1bvOMMo)
Argynbaeva Asel Mukhtarkyzy: BSc (specialty in Biotechnology), MSc (specialty in Biotechnology), 3rd year PhD student at KazNAU (specialty in Plant Protection and Quarantine), 2 years of research experience, fits the project profile.
Kairkanov Bolat Kozhekbaevich: secondary education
List of publications and patents of the project executors for the period from 2015 to 2020.
- Zhambakin, K., Zhapar, K. Current status and prospects of plant biotechnology in Kazakhstan. Plant Biotechnology Report 14, 177–184 (2020). DOI:10.1007/s11816-020-00601-0, IF-1.259, Q-3, процентиль-64
- Daurov D., Zhapar K., Daurova A., Volkov D., Bakbergenova M., Tolegenova D., Shamekova M., Zhambakin K. Production of virus-free sweet potato planting material for the southeast of Kazakhstan. International journal of agriculture and biology 20 (4) : 851-856, 2018. DOI:17957/IJAB/15.0576. IF (WoS) – 0.82, Q-3, процентиль (Scopus)-56
- Daurova Ainash, Daurov Dias, Volkov Dmitriy, Aibek Karimov, Zhandos Abai, Daniyar Raimbek,Kuanish Zhapar, Kabyl Zhambakin, Malika Shamekova. Mutagenic treatment of microspore-derived embryos of turnip rape (Brassica rapa) to increase oleic acid content. Plant Breeding. 2020; 00:1–7. DOI:10.1111/pbr.12830, IF (WoS) – 1.251, Q -3, процентиль (Scopus) – 62
- Daurov, D., Daurova, A., Karimov, A. Tolegenova, D., Volkov, D., Raimbek D., Zhambakin K.,Shamekova M. Determining Effective Methods of Obtaining Virus-Free Potato for Cultivation in Kazakhstan. Am.J.PotatoRes. 97, 367–375 (2020). DOI:10.1007/s12230-020-09787-z, IF (WoS) -1.085, Q-3, процентиль (Scopus) -57
- Daurova A, Daurov D, Volkov D, Zhapar K, Raimbek D, Shamekova M, Zhambakin K. Doubled haploids of interspecific hybrids between Brassica napus and Brassica rapa for canola production with valuable breeding traits. OCL 27: 45. DOI:10.1051/ocl/2020041; SiteCoreScopus-2.8, процентиль – 70
- Kalendar R, Muterko A, Shamekova M, Zhambakin K. In Silico PCR Tools for a Fast Primer, Probe, and Advanced Searching. (2017) Methods in Molecular Biology, 1620, pp. 1-31. DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-7060-5_1
Results obtained for 2021: As a result of the analysis of the soil selected at three points in private households of residents, it was found that the maximum permissible concentrations (MPC) of lead were exceeded by 83 times, zinc by 266 and copper by 267. As a result of in vitro screening of 57 varieties of sweet potatoes, we selected 2 resistant genotypes (CO-12, CO-16) and 2 sensitive (CO-5 and CO-7) to lead and other heavy metals.
Results obtained for 2023:
- The level of soil contamination with lead and other heavy metals was determined by Shymkent lead plant, where high concentrations of heavy metals lead (Pb), zinc (Zn) and cadmium (Cd) were detected. Analysis of soil sampled from 4 sites of private farmsteads of residents, was found to exceed the maximum allowable concentrations (MAC) in soil lead at the polluted site №4 and cadmium at almost all sampled sites.
- Screening was carried out at in vitro level where 32 sweet potato cultivars were selected from 57 cultivars. Phenotypic evaluation for leaf damage on a scale of 0 to 10 was then carried out to select tolerant and sensitive plants from the 32 cultivars. In addition, through physiological and biochemical analyses, tolerant cultivars (KO-12 and KO-16) and sensitive cultivars (KO-7 and KO-5) were selected.
- Experimental cultivation of sweet potatoes was carried out in the lead-contaminated territory of southern Kazakhstan. According to the results of the analysis of atomic absorption spectroscopy, it was shown that site №4 was the most contaminated with heavy metals, exceeding the maximum allowable concentration.
- The difference in gene expression spectrum between the most tolerant cultivar KO-12 and the most sensitive cultivar KO-5 was determined by comparative transcriptome analysis. Four genes were investigated at the molecular level: Metallothionein (IbMT1), ATPase 3 (HMA3) homolog gene, PODs (swpb3 and swpa4). From the results obtained, it was found that lead treatment showed different gene expression changes between the two cultivars, high expression level was observed in the tolerant cultivar KO-12.
- To process sweet potatoes into starch, two different methods were used. The first method yielded up to 3 g of starch, while the second method yielded 10-12 g of starch. After processing the sweet potatoes into starch and analyzing for heavy metal content, out of the two methods, the second method was preferred, which was the best for both processing and analyzing for heavy metal content in sweet potatoes.
- To investigate the possibility of lead extraction from sweet potato biomass, a tolerant (KO-12) and a sensitive (KO-5) cultivar were taken and treated with an increased concentration of 30 mM lead for 10 days. The analysis revealed that the KO-5 cultivar showed less adsorption in roots compared to KO-12. Also, as in roots, KO-12 cultivar showed high adsorption capacity in leaves and showed about 1.9 times more lead content compared to KO-5 cultivar at 10 days after treatment (DAT).
- Based on all the results obtained, it can be confidently assumed that sweet potatoes have good adsorption of lead by roots and leaves, as well as the ability to remediate lead and other heavy metals.
Publications for 2023 y.
Articles in peer-reviewed journals recognized by CQASEMERK:
1) Zh.K. Abilda, D.L. Daurov, A.K. Daurova, K.K. Zhapar, Z.B. Sapakhova, K.Zh. Zhambakin, M.Kh. Shamekova. Construction of a geoecological map of dust particles transfer from the surface of the Shymkent lead (plumbum) factory dump // Eurasian Journal of Ecology. – 2023. – Vol. 74(1). – P. 4-15.
Abstracts of foreign and domestic international conferences:
1) Жамбакин К.Ж., Дауров Д.Л. Soil pollution with heavy metals in Shymkent // Proceedings of the international scientific and practical conference «Ecological genetics and public Health: achievements and prospects», January 18, 2023, dedicated to the 80th anniversary of Doctor of Biological Sciences, Professor, Academician of the National Academy of Sciences of the Higher School of the Republic of Kazakhstan Bigaliev Aitkhazhi Bigalievich.C. 23–27. (in Russian)
Articles in foreign journals:
1) Daurov D., Zhambakin K., Shamekova M. Phytoremediation as a way to clean technogenically polluted areas of Kazakhstan // Brazilian Journal of Biology = Revista Brasleira de Biologia. – 2023. – Vol. 83. – P. e271684. https://doi.org/10.1590/1519-6984.271684 (Percentile (Scopus): 68);
Toishimanov M., Abilda Z., Daurov D., Daurova A., Zhapar K., Sapakhova Z., Kanat R., Stamgaliyeva Z., Zhambakin K., Shamekova M. Phytoremediation Properties of Sweet Potato for Soils Contaminated by Heavy Metals in South Kazakhstan // Applied Sciences. – 2023. Vol. 13. – P. 9589. https://doi.org/10.3390/app13179589 (IF (WoS) – 2.7, Q-2, percentile (Scopus): 75)
