Identification of cadmium bioaccumulation in rice (Oryza sativa L.) by the soil-plant transfer model and species sensitivity distribution

Contamination of agricultural soil with cadmium (Cd) poses a severe threat to food safety and human health, especially for Cd in rice. It is very important to identify Cd bioaccumulation in rice in order to screen Cd-safe cultivars. In the present study, 183 pairs of rice and soil data collected from Cd-contaminated soil were used to investigate the differences of Cd bioaccumulation in grains among rice cultivars. The results showed that the adverse effect on grain Cd accumulation of japonica was less than that of indica under Cd exposure. The percentage of japonica with grain Cd concentration exceeding 0.2 mg/kg reduced 50.3% compared with indica. Partial correlation analyses suggested that lower pH contributed to Cd accumulation in grains, and a significant increase in grain Cd concentration was observed with increasing soil Cd concentration. The bioaccumulation factors (BCF) of Cd in rice grains could be divided into 5 grades by combining an empirical soil-plant transfer model with species sensitivity distribution (SSD). Grades with lower Cd bioaccumulation (grades 1 and 2) were dominated by japonica, and the intrinsic sensitivity index of Cd-enrichment (k value) and straw to grain transfer factors (TF) increased with ascending grades. Average k value and TF of cultivars in grade 5 were 1.4–7.9 and 1.5–5.7 times higher than those of cultivars in grades 1 to 4, which eventually caused the increase of Cd accumulation in grains. The lower level of Cd absorption and translocation contributed to reducing the bioaccumulation of Cd in rice grains had been proved by the classification of rice on Cd accumulation. Considering the influence of soil properties and intrinsic sensitivity of rice, cultivars with grain Cd bioaccumulation controlled at low levels to safe for human consumption could be identified on Cd-contaminated soils. [Display omitted] •Soil pH value, organic carbon content, and intrinsic sensitivity of rice affect grain cadmium (Cd) bioaccumulation.•Rice plants are graded into five groups based on Cd bioaccumulation factors and soil pH.•A method to screen Cd-safe rice cultivars based on species sensitivity distribution and bioavailability model is developed.