Leaf epidermal changes in three common crop plants found in a gas-flared community in Oben Village, Edo State Nigeria

Abstract

The study investigated the impact of gas flaring on soil and air quality, as well as quantitative and qualitative anatomical characters of three selected plants Musa paradisiaca, Carica papaya and Talinum triangulare in and around Oben Flow Station. Most of these test crop plants located around the gas flare site showed signs of chlorosis, wilting and stunted growth. The interrelationship between the morphological characters of polluted and non-polluted plants was compared. The epidermal cell shape identified on adaxial and abaxial side of all the study plants varied from polygonal, elongated to wavy/sinous cell shape. Anticlinal wall varied from curved, undulated to straight in all test plants. Stomata number was more on the abaxial surface than adaxial surface in all the plants. In this study hypo-stomatic and amphi-stomatic were identified, among the species where anomocytic stomata is found in abaxial layers of all the three species Hemiparacytic in adaxial of T. triangulare and Anomocytic with cell inclusion distributed all around the cell layers of the Plants. The leaves of non-polluted plants grew normally while the polluted plants suffered anatomical aberration; Cell disruption in leaves was eminent.

Keywords: Flaring, pollution, plant anatomy, Musa paradisiaca, Carica papaya and Talinum triangulare