Arsenic uptake, translocation and speciation in pho1 and pho2 mutants of Arabidopsis thaliana.

Arsenate [As (V)] is taken up by phosphate [P (V)] transporters in the plasma membrane of roots cells, but the translocation of As from roots to shoots is not well understood. Two mutants of Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) [(pho1, P deficient) and (pho2, P accumulator)], with defects in the regulation and translocation of P (V) from roots to shoots, were therefore used in this study to investigate uptake, translocation and speciation of As in roots and shoots of plants grown in soil or nutrient solution. The shoots of the pho2 mutant contained higher P concentrations, but similar or slightly higher As concentrations, in comparison with the wild type. In the pho1 mutant, the P concentration in the shoots was lower, and the As concentration was higher, in comparison with the wild type. Both pho2 and the wild type contained mainly As (III) in roots and shoot (67-90% of total As). Arsenic was likely to be translocated by a different pathway to P (V) in the pho2 and pho1 mutants. Therefore, it is suggested that As (III) is the main As species translocated from roots to shoots in Arabidopsis thaliana.