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Abstract

One of the most important natural resources, soil is necessary for the survival of all plants, animals, and microbes.Numerous microorganisms in soils are vital to the cycling of nutrients and pedogenesis because they are supported by the copious nutrients found in the soil and interact with one another in different ways.The functional activities of these essential soil microorganisms undergo significant alterations when the soil ecosystem is altered or disturbed by additional contaminants.One such alteration is caused when heavy metals are introduced to the soil.Heavy metal pollution is a severe threat that poses great danger to not only plants but also animals and humans.Prolonged exposure of lead (Pb) can cause decreased metabolism and chlorosis in plants, and it can affect the brain, central nervous system, liver and kidneys in humans.Heavy exposure to lead can cause lead poisoning which can lead to death.Therefore, effective methods are necessary to purify the soil of these metals.Phytoremediation is one such method that has been gaining a lot of importance recently, which has been proven to be effective in mobilizing heavy metals from soil.Phosphate solubilizing microorganisms (PSM) are a group of bacteria capable of mobilizing metals from soil so that plants can readily absorb them.So, this study mainly focuses on the effect of PSM on the uptake of Lead (Pb) in tomato plants (Solanum lycopersicum L.).