Radiocesium in Shiitake mushroom; Accumulation in living fruit bodies and leaching from dead fruit bodies

Guido-Garcia, F.; Sakamoto, Fuminori  ; David, K.*; Kozai, Naofumi   ; Grambow, B.

Cesium (Cs) accumulation by Shiitake was investigated to contribute to the elucidation of radiocesium-cycling mechanisms in forest environments. The results demonstrate that Shiitake non-specifically accumulates Cs while accumulating the essential element K and provide evidence that no selective Cs accumulation (or binding) sites exist within the Shiitake fruit body. Furthermore, the present results show that most accumulated Cs quickly leaches out from the dead fruit body with exposure to water. The leached Cs was largely adsorbable on clay minerals, suggesting that the Shiitake fruit body likely contains Cs in the cation form.