Mecanismos de resistencia a metales pesados en "Erica andevalensis"

Abstract

Erica andevalensis Cabezudo & Rivera is an endemic Heather from the Iberian Pyritic Belt (SW Iberian Peninsula), that survives in acid and metal enriched soils. This PhD has been divided in three main sections. The first section of the thesis was to analyse the distribution of the plant and metal content. Secondly, antioxidant metabolites and enzymes were assayed in wild plants that did not show any symptom of oxidative stress, indicating that it is well adapted to extreme environments. Thirdly the species was cultivated under laboratory controlled conditions, using micropropagation techniques or from seeds. The germination is favoured by acidity and high levels of iron, factors that could explain its distribution. Germination was also favoured by gibberellic acid, phytohormone studied with the aim to increase the germination rate. Under laboratory controlled conditions the species is able to accumulate cadmium in the aerial tissues, increasing the total antioxidant capacity.