Date of Graduation
Fall 2023
Degree
Master of Science in Chemistry
Department
Chemistry and Biochemistry
Committee Chair
Cyren Rico
Abstract
The generational exposures of plants to contaminants are real in the environment, however, there is limited understanding of the pattern of the response. In this study, harvested seeds of wheat planted in soil amended with PFOS at 0 and 25 mg/kg were cultivated in clean soil to produce daughter plants. The treatment combinations were 0-0 mg/kg and 25-0 mg/kg, which means 0 or 25 mg/kg PFOS treatments in the first generation and only 0 mg/kg PFOS in the second generation. Plant stress and responses including plant growth and biomass, chlorophyll content, lipid peroxidation, and enzyme activity were measured at short exposure period (21 days growth period). Plant biomass yields, elemental concentration, and grain metabolomics were also measured at long exposure period (92 days growth period). The daughter plants exhibited decreased chlorophyll content and lipid peroxidation at short exposure period. The elemental concentrations were mostly not affected except for changes in micro-elements Cu and B. For the metabolomics analysis, several metabolites showed changes in second-generation grains compared to first-generation grains. However, only the chlorophyll content and two-grain metabolites (linolenic acid and malonic acid) showed changes relative to control like those recorded in the first-generation study. Literature reports on transgenerational stress memory in plants indicate that some phenotypic changes can be silenced or transferred to future generations. However, increases in sucrose, linolenic acid, tryptophan, inositol-4-monophosphate, and ferulic acid suggest adaptation to former stress. Current findings seem to suggest that one-generation exposure to PFOS does not cause detrimental effects on the next generation after cessation of exposure. Overall, results from this study provide insights into the effects of generational exposures of plants to PFOS.
Keywords
contaminant, environment, exposure, metabolomics, PFAS
Subject Categories
Analytical Chemistry | Environmental Chemistry
Copyright
© Olamide Rachael Ogundele
Recommended Citation
Ogundele, Olamide Rachael, "Stress Memory of Wheat After One-Generation Exposure to Perfluorooctanesulfonic Acid (PFOS)" (2023). MSU Graduate Theses/Dissertations. 3918.
https://bearworks.missouristate.edu/theses/3918
