Potentially Toxic Elements: A Review on Their Soil Behavior and Plant Attenuation Mechanisms against Their Toxicity

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

The text is very well written in terms of content, extensively described. The diagrams are clear and understandable. The literature used is very up to date.
The issue is very topical at the moment and the literature analysis performed exhausts the subject. I only picked up two technical errors that should to be corrected:

- line 167- no full stop at the end of the sentence

- line 170- wrong format of citation "(Strawn, 2021)"

In their work, the authors address the very topical issue of environmental contamination by toxic substances - heavy metals -, their behaviour in the soil and subsequently on plants, and the plant mechanisms to counteract this toxicity. Taking into account the increasing danger from the increasing release of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) into the environment, the proposed review of plant mechanisms leading to the reduction of this toxicity is needed, and will help to organise the knowledge available so far. The biggest advantage of the publication is that it was written on the basis of the most up-to-date publications available - only two of the 111 works are from the late 1990s, which perfectly confirms the topicality of the text. The tables, diagrams and charts included in the text are very easy to read and understand. As the authors themselves point out, further research is needed into the mechanisms of absorption, translocation and accumulation of PTEs,  in order to e.g. ensure adequate food quality 

Author Response

Reviewer #1

The text is very well written in terms of content, extensively described. The diagrams are clear and understandable. The literature used is very up to date. The issue is very topical at the moment and the literature analysis performed exhausts the subject. I only picked up two technical errors that should to be corrected:

- line 167- no full stop at the end of the sentence

- line 170- wrong format of citation "(Strawn, 2021)"

In their work, the authors address the very topical issue of environmental contamination by toxic substances - heavy metals -, their behaviour in the soil and subsequently on plants, and the plant mechanisms to counteract this toxicity. Taking into account the increasing danger from the increasing release of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) into the environment, the proposed review of plant mechanisms leading to the reduction of this toxicity is needed, and will help to organise the knowledge available so far. The biggest advantage of the publication is that it was written on the basis of the most up-to-date publications available - only two of the 111 works are from the late 1990s, which perfectly confirms the topicality of the text. The tables, diagrams and charts included in the text are very easy to read and understand. As the authors themselves point out, further research is needed into the mechanisms of absorption, translocation and accumulation of PTEs, in order to e.g. ensure adequate food quality.

Authors: We wish to thank the reviewer for the laud. The errors pointed out by the reviewer have been corrected in the revised manuscript.

Reviewer 2 Report

The presented manuscript explores the latest and state-of-the-art progress in Potentially Toxic Elements: A Review on Their Soil Behavior and Plant Attenuation Mechanisms against Their Toxicity. The manuscript presented is a fairly good-organized work. However, some issues require to be addressed scientifically. I recommend minor revisions.

1. Please make sure to define each acronym at its first use. Check through the entire manuscript to make sure it is defined at the first use.

2. Quality of Figures is poor (Particularly Figure 3). Please provide high-quality Figures.

3. The literature review needs to more updated with recent related research: (1. Hexavalent-Chromium-Induced Oxidative Stress and the Protective Role of Antioxidants against Cellular Toxicity. Antioxidants 12 (2022) 2375. https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox11122375; 2. Heavy Metal Contamination in the Aquatic Ecosystem: Toxicity and Its Remediation Using Eco-Friendly Approaches. Toxics 11 (2023)147. https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics11020147)

4. Grammar needs to be improved significantly.

Grammar needs to be improved significantly.

Author Response

Reviewer #2

The presented manuscript explores the latest and state-of-the-art progress in Potentially Toxic

Elements: A Review on Their Soil Behavior and Plant Attenuation Mechanisms against Their

Toxicity. The manuscript presented is a fairly good-organized work. However, some issues

require to be addressed scientifically. I recommend minor revisions.

1. Please make sure to define each acronym at its first use. Check through the entire manuscript

to make sure it is defined at the first use.

Authors: Done.

2. Quality of Figures is poor (Particularly Figure 3). Please provide high-quality Figures.

Authors: Done.

3. The literature review needs to more updated with recent related research: (1. Hexavalent-

Chromium-Induced Oxidative Stress and the Protective Role of Antioxidants against Cellular

Toxicity. Antioxidants 12 (2022) 2375. https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox11122375; 2. Heavy

Metal Contamination in the Aquatic Ecosystem: Toxicity and Its Remediation Using Eco-

Friendly Approaches. Toxics 11 (2023)147. https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics11020147)

Authors: Done.

4. Grammar needs to be improved significantly.

Authors: Done.

Once again, we wish to thank the reviewers for helping us improve the quality of our manuscript considerably.