Research Journal of Recent Sciences ________________________________________________ ISSN 2277-2502
Vol. 1 (ISC-2011), 172-177 (2012)
Res.J.Recent Sci.

Study of air pollution tolerance Index of plants growing in
Pithampur Industrial area sector 1, 2 and 3
Chouhan Aarti1 Iqbal Sanjeeda1 Maheshwari R.S.2 and Bafna A.2
Department of Botany, Govt. Holkar Science College,Indore,MP, INDIA
2
Department of Biochemistry,Govt. Holkar Science College,Indore,MP, INDIA
1

Available online at: www.isca.in
(Received 13th October 2011, revised 6th January 2012, accepted 25th January 2012)

Abstract
Clean air, pure water and nutritious food are basic amenities of life but the quality of air, water and land is deteriorating
continuously. Industrial air pollution is more complex than most other environmental challenges. No physical or chemical method
is known to ameliorate industrial air pollutation. A suitable alternative way is to grow green plants in and around industries.). Air
pollution tolerance level differs from plant to plant. Response of plants towards air pollution was assessed by air pollution
tolerance Index (APTI value. We studied air pollution tolerance Index (APTI value) of six plant species i.e Azadirechata indica
(Neem) ,Calotropis gigantea, (Aak), Dalbergia sissoo (Shishum), Euginia jambolana(Jamun),Mangifera indica(Aam) and Nerium
indicum (Kaner) growing in Pithampur Industrial area sector 1, 2 and 3. The highest APTI was observed in C. gigantea (19.3842)
ans lowest in A. indica (7.8796). The highest reduction in APTI was noted in Industrial area sector-3, indicating highest air
pollution in that area.
Keywords: Industrial air pollution, Air pollution tolerance index, Pithampur Industrial area.

Introduction

Material and Methods

Air pollution is more complex than most other environmental
challenges. No physical or chemical method is known to
ameliorate air pollution. A suitable alternative is to develop a
biological method by growing green plants in and around
industrial and urban areas1,2.

Leaves were collected in triplicate for analysis from
Pithampur industrial area sector 1, 2 and 3 and for control
leaves were collected from Pattharmundla Gaon which is
situated far away from the industries.

All combustion release gases and particles in to the air which
includes Sulphur, NOx, CO, and soot particle as well as
smaller quantities of toxic metals, organic molecules and
radioactive isotopes3. Industrialization is a major cause of
pollution4. Plants provide an enormous leaf area for
impingement, absorption and accumulation of air pollutants
to reduce the pollutants level in the environment, with a
various extent5.
They act as the scavengers for many air borne particulates in
the atmosphere6. Plants sensitivity and tolerance to air
pollutants varies with change in Leaf extract pH, Relative
water contents (RWC), ascorbic acid (AA) content and Total
Chlorophyll content. Study of single parameter may not
provide a clear picture of the pollution induced changes; so
air pollution tolerance index (APTI) which was based on
these parameters has been used to know tolerance levels of
plant species5,7. In the present study APTI of six plants i.e. A.
indica. (Neem), C. gigantea. (Aak), D. sissoo. (Shishum), E.
Jambolana.(Jamun), M. indica (Aam), N. indicum. (Kaner)
were calculated.

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Area: Pithampur is located at a latitude 22˚ 37’27” N and
longitude 75˚ and 34’58” E at the east central border of
Dhar District in M.P. about 45 km from Indore altitude is
about 550 meter above mean sea level. Pithampur is located
about 16 km away from NH-3. Site plan of studied
Pithampur industrial area sector 1, 2 and 3
Plants: Plant species studied were Azadirechata indica,
(Neem), Calotropis gigantea (Aak), Dalbergia sissoo
(Shishum), Euginia Jambolana (Jamun), Mangifera indica
(Aam) and Nerium indicum (Kaner).
Sample collection: Samples were collected in early morning
and brought to laboratory in polythene bag kept in ice box to
nullify the adverse effect of high light intensity and
temperature. The leaves were carried out from a height of 01
to 02 meter from the ground level.
Procedure: Photosynthetic pigment: - The leaves were
washed with distilled water and cut into small pieces. 100 mg
each fresh leaves were taken for analysis. The samples were
crushed with 5ml of 80% acetone in a glass pestle with a
pinch of washed sand. The crushed samples along with

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Research Journal of Recent Sciences ____________________________________________________________ ISSN 2277-2502
Vol. 1 (ISC-2011), 172-177 (2012)
Res. J. Recent Sci.

washings were collected and sediment was washed with 2ml
of 80% acetone and again centrifuged for 3 minutes. The
final volume of supernatant was made up to 10ml by adding
80% acetone for analysis. The samples were analyzed with
the help of visible spectrophotometer. Absorbance was read
in 645 to 663 nm for chlorophyll, 480 and 510 nm for
carotenoids.
The concentration of chlorophyll and carotenoid were
calculated with the help of absorption coefficient of Arnon 8.
Following formulae are used: Photosynthetic pigment mg/gm
of leaves = Chl.a + Chl.b+ Carotenoid
Chl.a (mg/gm) = 22.7× OD 663-2.69 ×OD 645
Chl.b (mg/gm) =12.9× OD 645-4.68 ×OD 663
Carotenoied (mg/gm) =7.6 × OD 480 – 1.49 × OD 510
Relative water content (RWC): RWC= [FW-DW)/ (TWDW)] x100 FW = fresh weight, DW= dry weight and TW=
turgid weight. Fresh weight was obtained by weighing the
fresh leaves. The leaves were then immersed in water over
night, blotted dry and weighed to get turgid weight. Now the
leaves were dried over in an oven at 70 ˚C and reweighed to
obtain the dry weight 9.

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Leaf extract pH: 5 grams of the leaves were homogenized in
50 ml deionized water, and then filtered and the pH of
filtered leaf extract was determined by using pH meter.
Ascorbic acid content (AA): Ascorbic acid content was
measured by using spectrophotometric method. 1 g of the
fresh foliage was put in a test-tube, 4 ml oxalic acid - EDTA
extracting solution was added, then 1 ml of orthophosphoric
acid and then 1 ml 5% tetraoxosulphonic(VI) acid added to
this mixture, 2 ml of ammonium molybdate was added and
then 3 ml of water. The solution was then allowed to stand
for 15 minutes. Then the absorbance was measured at 760nm
with a spectrophotometer10.
APTI: APTI calculated as:
APTI = [AA (T + P) + R] / 10
Where R stands for is relative water content in mg/g AA
stands for the ascorbic acid in mg/g T stands for the total
chlorophyll in mg/g P stands for pH of leaf sample On the
basis of APTI values plants were categorized into three
groups11.
i) Sensitive species <10 ii) Intermediate species among1016 iii) Tolerant species >17

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Research Journal of Recent Sciences ____________________________________________________________ ISSN 2277-2502
Vol. 1 (ISC-2011), 172-177 (2012)
Res. J. Recent Sci.
Table-1
Showing Relative water content of studied plants
(Control vs Pithampur Industrial Area sector – 1, 2 and 3)
S.No.
1
2
3
4
5
6

Name of Plants
A. indica. (Neem)
C. gigantea.(Aak)
D. sissoo.(Shishum)
E.Jambolana.(Jamun)
M. indica. (Aam)
N. indicum. (Kaner)

Control
78.8732
80.6666
71.6535
83.4254
58.5714
64.0449

Relative water content
Sector-1
48.9795
99.1329
72.7272
80.6451
59.7866
66.6666

(mg/gm)
Sector-2
50.0000
98.8439
71.0937
77.7777
60.0000
67.4418

Sector-3
42.1875
98.8338
60.0000
71.6777
58.6923
65.8823

Table- 2
Showing pH of studied plants
(Control vs Pithampur Industrial Area Sector -1, 2 and 3)
S.No.
1
2
3
4
5
6

Name of Plants
A. indica. (Neem)
C. gigantea.(Aak)
D. sissoo.(Shishum)
E.Jambolana.(Jamun)
M. indica (Aam)
N. indicum. (Kaner)

S. No.
1
2
3
4
5
6

Control
5.05
7.41
5.27
5.00
5.12
4.95

Leaves Extract PH
Sector-1
Sector-2
5.03
5.04
7.40
7.39
5.25
5.23
4.98
4.92
5.11
5.08
4.85
4.83

Table-3
Total Photosynthetic Pigment of studied plants and % reduction
(Control vs Pithampur Industrial area Sector 1, 2 and 3)
Total Photosynthetic Pigment (mg/gm)
Name of Plants
Control
Sector-1
Sector-2
A. indica. (Neem)
7.15+0.03
0.55±0.04
0.51±0.04
C. gigantea.(Aak)
5.75±0.01
1.09±0.07
1.06±0.08
D. sissoo.(Shishum)
7.18±0.03
1.14±0.18
1.15±0.18
E.Jambolana.(Jamun)
6.17±0.02
0.89±0.13
0.84±0.11
M. indica. (Aam)
4.52±0.02
1.14±0.22
1.12±0.0.23
N. indicum. (Kaner)
3.06±0.01
0.72±0.06
0.67±0.06

Sector-3
5.02
7.39
5.20
4.89
5.06
4.08

Sector-3
0.51±0.20
0.99±0.07
1.07±0.16
0.79±0.10
1.11±0.26
0.65±0.05

Table-4
Showing Ascorbic acid content of studied plant
(Control vs Pithampur Industrial Area sector -1, 2 and 3)
S.No.
1
2
3
4
5
6

Name of Plants
A. indica. (Neem)
C. gigantea.(Aak)
D. sissoo.(Shishum)
E.Jambolana.(Jamun)
M. indica (Aam)
N. indicum. (Kaner)

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Control
6.67 ± 0.02
8.60 ± 0.06
6.73 ± 0.15
6.77 ± 0.02
6.82 ± 0.04
3.57 ± 0.03

Ascorbic Acid Content(mg/gm)
Sector-1
Sector-2
6.65 ± 0.01
6.63 ± 0.20
8.58 ± 0.01
8.51 ± 0.01
6.72 ± 0.01
6.71 ± 0.01
6.73 ± 0.01
6.72 ± 0.01
6.80 ± 0.00
6.79 ± 0.01
3.50 ± 0.00
3.48 ± 0.01

Sector-3
6.62 ± 0.02
8.56 ± 0.02
6.70 ± 0.00
6.70 ± 0.00
6.76 ± 0.01
3.45 ± 0.01

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Research Journal of Recent Sciences ____________________________________________________________ ISSN 2277-2502
Vol. 1 (ISC-2011), 172-177 (2012)
Res. J. Recent Sci.
Table-5
Air pollution tolerance index (APTI) of studied plants
(Control vs Pithampur Industrial Area sector -1, 2 and 3)
S.No.
1
2
3
4
5
6

Name of Plants

Air pollution tolerance index
Sector-1
Sector-2
8.6086 (11.92%)
8.6796 (11.19 %)
17.1548 (11.50%)
17.1260 (11.66 %)
11.5668 (25.61 %)
11.3903 (26.70 %)
12.0150 (24.46 %)
11.6484 (26.79 %)
10.2286 (17.77 %)
10.2098 (17.94 %)
8.6161 (7.01 %)
8.6477 (6.69 %)

Control
9.7743
19.3842
15.5442
15.9046
12.4316
9.2640

A. indica. (Neem)
C. gigantea.(Aak)
D. sissoo.(Shishum)
E.Jambolana.(Jamun)
M. indica (Aam)
N. indicum. (Kaner)

Sector-3
7.8796 (19.38 % )
17.0566 (12.02%)
10.2009 (34.26 %)
11.0188 (30.75 %)
10.0401 (19.22 %)
8.4684 (8.63%)

21

APTI values

18
15

Control

12

Sector-1

9

Sector-2

6

Sector-3

3
0

.
.
.
.
.
.
la na . indic a ndicu m
dic a
n tea . sis soo
mbo
A. in C. giga
D
M
N. i
E.J a
Name of Plants

Graph
Showing comparison of air pollution tolerance Index of studied plants
(Control vs Pithampur Industrial. area Sector 1, 2 and 3)

Results and Discussion
Total photosynthetic pigment: There are so many factors
controlling tolerance in plants. .Plants with lower pH are
more susceptible, while those with pH around 7 are more
tolerant7. Total chlorophyll (TCH) is related to Ascorbic
Acid productivity and Ascorbic acid is concentrated mainly
in chloroplast. Photosynthetic efficiency was strongly
dependent on leaf pH. Photosynthetic rate was reduced in
plants at low leaf pH. A considerable loss in total chlorophyll
in the leaves of plants exposed to air pollution stress supports
the argument that the chloroplast is the primary site of attack
by air pollutants12. The plants having Chlorophyll content
between 4 to 16 mg/gm are categorized as intermediately
tolerant plant species13. Thus, all plant species undertaken for
study were intermediately tolerant plants species against
pollution load and dust particulates.
Ascorbic acid (AA): It is a strong reducer and plays
important role in photosynthesis (carbon-dioxide fixation).
Its reducing power is directly proportional to its
concentration. High pH may increase the efficiency of
conversion of hexose sugar to ascorbic acid and it is related
to the tolerance to pollution5,14. Production of reactive
oxygen species (ROS) such as SO3- 2, HSO3,-2 OH- and O2_

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during photo-oxidation of SO3- 2 to SO4-2 where sulphites are
generated from SO2 absorbed. The free radical production
under SO2 exposure would increase the free radical
scavengers, such as ascorbic acid, super oxide dismutase
(SOD), and peroxidase based on dosage and physiological
status of plant. The increase level of ascorbic acid reported
may be due to the defense mechanism of the respective
plants12,15. The ascorbic acid content ranged between 7.52 to
11.05 mg in intermediately tolerant species and 1.61 to 8.23
mg/gm among the sensitive plant species13. In the present
study the ascorbic acid content of all the plant species varies
from 3.45 to 8.60mg/gm
Change in leaf extract pH: All the samples collected from
polluted site exhibited change in pH of leaf sap towards
acidic side, which may be due to the presence of SO2 and
NOx in the ambient air16. The change in leaf extract pH
might influence the stomatal sensitivity due to air pollution.
The plants with high sensitivity to SO2 and NOx closed the
stomata faster when they are exposed to the pollutants17. The
pH ranged between 4.4 and 8.8 lies in both intermediately
tolerant and sensitive plant species13.
Change in relative water content (RWC): RWC of a leaf is
the water present in it relative to its full turgidity. Water is

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Research Journal of Recent Sciences ____________________________________________________________ ISSN 2277-2502
Vol. 1 (ISC-2011), 172-177 (2012)
Res. J. Recent Sci.
crucial prerequisite for plant life.7 High water content within
a plant body will help to maintain its physiological balance
under stress condition such as exposure to air pollution when
the transpiration rates are usually high. High RWC favor
drought resistance in plants. Due to the air pollution there is
reduction in transpiration rate and damage to the leaf engine
that pulls water up from the roots. (1-2% of the total)
consequently the plants neither bring minerals nor cool the
leaf. Reduction in relative water content of plant species is
due to impact of pollutants on transpiration rate in leaves16.
According to Lakshmi et .al., (2009), RWC ranged between
58% to73% in intermediately tolerant species and 51.3% to
84% in sensitive plant species and thus, in the present study
some plant species are intermediately tolerant species. Plants
with high relative water content under polluted condition
may be tolerant to pollutants. The present study results
support the findings of 18, 19, 20, and 21.
Air Pollution Tolerance Index (APTI value): In this study
it was found that C.gigantea exhibited the highest APTI
value at all the sectors and our study results of air pollution
tolerance index was supported by 22. In the present study
APTI value was found to be less than 10 for two plants i.e of
A. indica and N. indicum. The highest reduction in APTI was
observed in D. sissoo (34.26 %) in sector- 3 and lowest
reduction was observed in N. indicum (6.69 %) in sector- 2.

Conclusion
The present study suggests that plantation of C .gigantea.
(Aak), D. sissoo. (Shishum), E .Jambolana. (Jamun), M.
indica (Aam) is useful for biomonitoring , the development
of green belts as well as to reduce industrial air pollution.

Acknowledgement
We express our sincere thanks to DR. S.L.Garg, Principal,
Govt. Holkar Science College (M.P.) for providing necessary
laboratory facilities and encouragement.

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