Autosampler series 3000

Juncus acutus roots and leaves (n = 10 for every treatment) were washed with tap water (3×) followed by washing with distilled water in order to remove any adhered particles. Next, they were dried at 50°C for 4 days. Dried plant samples (0.2 g) were digested with 9 mL HNO₃ (>69%, Sigma-Aldrich) and diluted with ultrapure water and centrifuged. Supernatants were subsequently filtered (0.45 μm, Whatman), diluted at 1:10 (v/v) with ultrapure water and analyzed by ICP-MS (ICP-MS 7500cx coupled with Autosampler Series 3000, both from Agilent Technologies).

Water samples were taken at days 0, 14, and 21 after addition of the contaminants and were analyzed for their concentrations of metals and organic contaminants. The soluble metals were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (7500cx coupled to Autosampler Series 3000, both from Agilent Technologies). BPA, CIP, and SMX concentrations were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) (Shimadzu Corp., Kyoto, Japan), equipped with LC-10 ADVP solvent delivery module, SPD-M10 AVP Diode Array Detector, RF-10AXL Fluorescence Detector, and SIL-10 ADVP autosampler. Separation of BPA was accomplished on a Nucleosil 100–5 C-18 column and separation of CIP and SMX was performed on an Alltech Prevail^TM Organic Acid 5u as previously described by Christofilopoulos et al. (2016) (link).
At the end of the experiment, the plants were harvested and washed first with water and then with distilled water. The fresh weights of roots and leaves were determined, plant parts were cut in small pieces and 0.4 g of each plant compartment was sampled for enzymatic analysis while 0.3 g of roots was taken for DNA extraction. The plant samples for further analysis were immediately snap-frozen in liquid nitrogen and stored at -80°C; the remaining material was dried at 45°C and weighed.