Phosphorus Speciation in Plants - Research Paper Example

Several mechanisms through which plants take up phosphorus from soils are explored. The bio-availability and natural abundance of phosphorus, as well as the uptake and utilization of phosphorus by plants, are discussed. It is seen that the amount of phosphorus available to plants depends on the amount of inorganic form of the element converted and translocated to the plant root and shoot.Phosphorus is one of the essential elements of living organisms. It performs a vital function in the cell’s biochemical and physiological processes.

Hence, phosphorus is an integral component of biomolecules like polysaccharides, phospholipids, proteins, and nucleic acids. Phosphorus occurs in the natural environment, predominantly as a product of weathering, at low concentrations (Childers et al., 2011). Thus, phosphorus acts as a limiting nutrient; a species that inhibits the production of certain substances in specific geochemical cycles. It is tightly cycled in organisms, plants, and various ecosystems (Sommers, 2008). The dynamics and speciation of phosphorus in the natural environment can be best understood through the phosphorus’ redox fate in nature’s cycles.

This section reviews available literature on the availability of Phosphorus, its speciation, forms, deficiencies, fixation and availability in water, soil and plants. Methods of searching for its occurrence and the different compounds of the element will be discussed. The Phosphorous cycle through which the element is formed will also be discussed in detail using representations. This paper also explores the speciation and fate of phosphorus in the natural environment, particularly in plant’s internal transport.

The natural abundance of phosphorus in the Earth’s crust is about 0.12% (Valsami-Jones, 2004). Most of this phosphorus is in the form of minerals like the phosphorites, vivianite, apatite, and wavellite.