Uptake and distribution of polonium-210 and lead-210 in tobacco plants

Abstract

Athalye V. V. and Mistry K. B.Uptake and distribution of polonium-210 and lead-210 in tobacco plants. Radiation Botany12, 421-425, 1972.-The uptake and distribution of polonium-210 and its long-lived precursor lead-210 in two flue-cured tobacco varieties (Nicotiana tabacum L. cv. Delcrest and cv. Virginia gold), were examined in nutrient culture experiments. The accumulation of these radionuclides was greatest in the roots. Over identical durations of growth, the extent of upward transport of ²¹⁰Po and ²¹⁰Pb was relatively greater in cv. Virginia gold. The distribution of the radionuclides in aerial tissues followed an acropetal gradient suggesting that ²¹⁰Po and ²¹⁰Pb concentrations in leaf tobacco used for cigarette production would be reduced if leaves other than the oldest pairs are harvested.