Mulberry trees absorb 'forever chemicals,' harming silkworms that eat the leaves
Hou Z, Yu J, Luo H, Cheng G, Zhu C
Phytoremediation
If you grow mulberry or raise silkworms, the roots of these trees act like sponges for industrial pollutants, pulling them out of contaminated soil and passing them straight up the food chain to anything that eats the leaves.
Scientists tested how mulberry trees react to PFOS, a long-lasting industrial pollutant, compared to a newer chemical called OBS meant to replace it. PFOS turned out to be much more harmful, stunting plant growth and getting stuck mostly in the roots, while OBS caused far less damage. When silkworms were fed mulberry leaves loaded with PFOS, low doses didn't hurt them, but high doses made them grow poorly and produce less silk because genes needed for silk-making got switched off.
Key Findings
PFOS caused significantly stronger reductions in mulberry plant height, biomass, and photosynthesis than the substitute chemical OBS
PFOS accumulated mainly in roots (85.2%), with smaller amounts in leaves (14.3%) and stems (0.5%)
High PFOS exposure in silkworms caused growth retardation and reduced cocoon formation, tied to downregulation of the silk-protein gene GALNT; about 58.6% of ingested PFOS was excreted
chevron_right Technical Summary
Mulberry trees soak up a toxic 'forever chemical' called PFOS mostly through their roots, and when silkworms eat contaminated leaves, high doses stunt their growth and cut silk production. A newer replacement chemical called OBS turns out to be much gentler on the plants.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Comparative phytotoxicity of PFOS and its substitute OBS in mulberry and implications for a mulberry-silkworm exposure system.
Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) is a persistent perfluoroalkyl substance known to exert adverse effects on soil and terrestrial ecosystems. However, the toxicological risks of its substitutes,...
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