Evaluation of a novel test design to determine uptake of chemicals by plant roots

Abstract A new hydroponic study design to determine uptake of chemicals by plant roots was tested by (i) investigating uptake of [ 14 C]-1,2,4-triazole by wheat plants in a ring test with ten laboratory organizations and (ii) studying uptake of ten other radiolabelled chemicals by potato, tomato or wheat plants in two laboratories. Replicate data from the ring test were used to calculate plant uptake factor (PUF) values (uptake into roots and shoots) and transpiration stream concentration factor (TSCF) values (uptake into shoots). Average PUF for 1,2,4-triazole was 0.73 ( n  = 39, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.64, 0.82) and the corresponding TSCF value was 1.03 ( n  = 49, 95% CI: 0.76, 1.3). Boxplots and subsequent classification tree analysis of PUF and TSCF values showed that potential outlier values were > 1.38 and were observed for PUF replicates with low biomass increase (ratio of final to initial biomass ≤ 1.739) and small initial biomass (≤ 1.55 g) and for TSCF replicates with an increase in biomass of n  = 33, 95% CI: 0.57, 0.73) and 0.64 ( n  = 39, 95% CI: 0.58, 0.70). The additional experiments with ten chemicals and three plant species showed that uptake was low for polar substances of high molecular weight (≥ 394 g/mol) and that TSCF values increased with log K ow values of the tested chemicals ranging from − 1.54 to 1.88 (polynomial equation with R 2  = 0.64). A cluster analysis for three of the compounds that were tested on wheat and tomato indicated that the plant uptake was mainly determined by the substance. Overall, the findings show that the hydroponic study design allows for reliable quantification of plant uptake over a range of compound/crop combinations.