Human health risk assessment from consumption of (Portulaca oleracea) cultivated innickel contaminated soil and modified with iron nanoparticles

Consumption of vegetables contaminated with heavy metals is dangerous for human health. The present research determined some heavy metals in Portulaca oleracea and assessed its health risk.

P. oleracea was grown in pots using soil polluted with nickel and various amounts of iron nanoparticles (0, 15, and 30 mg/kg). The concentration of heavy metals was determined by ICP-OEC after the samples were extracted. The bioaccumulation and transfer factors in plants, daily intake, and risk indicators of heavy metals for humans were all calculated.

The treatment with 30 mg/kg of iron nanoparticles resulted in the maximum concentration of nickel and iron in the roots and aerial sections of P. oleracea. The nickel and iron TF were below one for the soil-root but above one for the root-stem. For nickel and iron, the BAF in the plant was discovered to be less than one. Human consumption of P. oleracea poses minimal dangers, as indicated by HRI values that are less than 1. Compared to iron, nickel showed higher HRI values. Across all treatments, children demonstrated high HRIs for nickel and iron than adults.

There are no non-cancerous diseases for consumers, according to the hazard ratio of the investigated components in the P. oleracea, which was 1. Overall, the findings demonstrated that the HRI of heavy elements for both analyzed age groups was less than one.