TITLE:
Effect of Heavy Metal Contamination on Soil Enzymes Activities
AUTHORS:
Justice Ofori Yeboah, Guangyu Shi, Weilin Shi
KEYWORDS:
Enzyme Activity, Dehydrogenases, Catalase, Urease, Soil Contamination, Heavy Metal
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection,
Vol.9 No.6,
June
28,
2021
ABSTRACT: Several enzymes
catalyze much of the processes that exist in the soil. Enzymes in polluted
soils are usually less active due to their exposure to heavy metals. The main
goal of this study was to see how bioavailable types of Cd affected the
behavior of catalase, urease, and dehydrogenases, as well as to compare the
findings from naturally and artificially polluted samples. An experiment was
conducted on two types of farmland (garden) soil: natural soil and soil that
had been chemically polluted with Cd. The total content of heavy metal graded
these soils as very highly polluted with Cd. The experiment was repeated four
times to test the effects of increasing concentration and days (time).
Extracellular enzymes from farmland performed enzymatic activity tests that
lasted 6 to 29 days after soil sampling. After 0, 5, 10, 20, 30, and 45 days of
incubation, soil samples were taken for testing respectively. However, even
though no nutrient was added, dehydrogenase and urease activity increased as Cd
concentration increased from 0 to 5 mg/L as the days passed. This is a result
of enzymes engaging in respiratory and other living activities because of the
low cadmium concentration and respiratory soil properties. However, there were
significant variations in enzyme activity between naturally polluted and
artificially contaminated soils. Dehydrogenases, Urease, and Catalase all
showed a common pattern of enzyme sensitivity, which could be ordered as
Dehydrogenase > Urease > Catalase. Dehydrogenase enzyme activity has been
discovered to be more Cd resistant.