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SOURCES OF VARIABILITY IN PLANT TOXICITY TESTING
Citation:
Clark, J., L. S. Ortego, AND A Fairbrother. SOURCES OF VARIABILITY IN PLANT TOXICITY TESTING. CHEMOSPHERE. Elsevier Science Ltd, New York, NY, 57(11):1599-1612, (2004).
Description:
Published literature is investigated regarding the response of plants to various substances to determine the sensitivity of agricultural plants versus other species, the similarity of effects seen at different taxonomic levels, sensitivity of plants growing outdoors versus in a greenhouse, and the sensitivity of different measurement endpoints. We find that agricultural species are not consistently more or less sensitive to the herbicides tested than non-crop species. Genus and family taxonomic groupings may show similar responses among species, but this similarity quickly decreases as the comparisons progress between orders and classes. Results from field and greenhouse studies are less in agreement between studies than data from the other topics. For example, one review found that for about half of the time, plants in the field are more sensitive than those in the greenhouse, while another report showed plants in the greenhouse are almost always more sensitive than in the field. Shoot length will be affected at concentrations lower than for other vegetative endpoints for most species tested. Overall, there is no one species or endpoint that is consistently the most sensitive for all species or all chemicals in all soils.