Di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) as plasticizer is widely used in the modern plastic manufacturing industry, DEHP and its breakdown products have been identified as a global environmental contaminant. Vegetables and crops which are the energy sources of human beings are often expose to DEHP, which enriched in humans through the food chain, resulting in many diseases. The content distribution of DEHP in leaf cuticular waxes and tissues of 14 plants including vegetables and crops, and in various parts of cells of 4 plants were investigated by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectromete (GC-MS). The results show the stronger the DEHP uptake ability of the plant the less ratio of DEHP in leaf cuticular wax occupying the total DEHP in the leaves of the plant. DEHP in atmosphere is adsorbed by leaf cuticular wax or stoma, then transfer to inner tissues through cell wall. Interestingly, we found that the leaf cuticular wax and cell wall of plants are possible barriers to uptake of DEHP for the plants possessing lower DEHP uptake ability. Our results will provide some information for further study on the mechanism of DEHP uptake by plants.

This study investigates the physiological changes of two varieties wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) seedlings namely LX77 and JM22 by spraying different concentrations of epibrassinolide (EBR) under Cd²⁺ stress using a hydroculture. Results showed that after foliar application of different concentrations of EBR, seedling growth properties, chlorophyll contents, root vigor, osmotic regulators, malondialdehyde (MDA) and H₂O₂ contents, relative conductivity, antioxidant enzyme activities were changed in both LX77 and JM22, and the optimal exogenous EBR concentration is 0.01 or 0.1 mg·L^− 1.