Université Nangui Abrogoua, UFR des Sciences de la Nature, Pôle de Recherche Production Végétale, Unité de Recherche Phytotechnie et Amélioration Génétique, 02 BP 801 Abidjan 02, Côte d'Ivoire
The main objective of this study is to assess the level of contamination, in trace elements (cadmium, copper, zinc, lead, nickel), of amaranth and lettuce grown on the market gardens of Marcory and Cocody and on the experimental plot of the University Nangui Abrogoua in the city of Abidjan (Ivory Coast). On the 3 sites, each species accumulate metals differently. Concentrations of metals in plants are influenced by the level of their presence in soil and the atmospheric depositions. The leaves of lettuce accumulated more Zn than those of amaranth on the 3 sites. On all the sites, the leaves of both species are unfit for human consumption because having contained lead, zinc and nickel above the recommended norms.