Zinc

04.07.2024

Zinc

Why in the news?   

      Researchers in France have discovered that zinc plays a crucial role in the health of legume crops.

About Zinc:

• It is a silvery blue-grey metal with a relatively low melting and boiling point.
• Both lead & zinc are found to occur together in ore along with other metals like silver and cadmium.
• It is the fourth most widely used metal across the globe, trailing only steel, aluminium and copper. India has self-sufficiency in respect of zinc.
• In India, Rajasthan has the largest reserves/resources of lead–zinc ore, followed by Andhra Pradesh (3.03%), Madhya Pradesh (1.98%), Bihar etc.
• Global reservoirs of Zinc: Australia accounts for 27% of the world's zinc reserves, followed by China (18%), Russia & Mexico (9% each), Peru (8%), Kazakhstan (5%), USA (4%), etc.

Uses of Zinc :

○The largest consumer of zinc is the Galvanising Industry. Owing to its corrosion resistance in varied types of environments, zinc is used for protecting steel by way of galvanizing.

○Large quantities of zinc are used to produce die-castings, which are important in the automobile, electrical and hardware industries.

○Zinc oxide is widely used to manufacture many products such as paints, rubber,etc.

Biological role of Zinc

○It is a trace mineral, meaning that the body only needs small amounts, and yet it is necessary for almost 100 enzymes to carry out vital chemical reactions.

○It is a major player in the creation of DNA, the growth of cells, building proteins, healing of damaged tissue, and supporting a healthy immune system.

Key findings

• It found that zinc in plants aids in nitrogen fixation, a process where atmospheric nitrogen is converted into ammonia, an essential nutrient for plants.

○Legume crops form a symbiotic relationship with rhizobia, a bacteria that fixes atmospheric nitrogen in root nodules.

○However, these nodules are sensitive to environmental factors such as temperature, drought, flooding, soil salinity and high soil nitrogen levels.

• Another vital finding of this study is the identification of a crucial transcription factor that controls nodule breakdown when soil nitrogen levels are high.
• The researchers discovered that legumes also use zinc as a secondary signal to integrate environmental factors and regulate nitrogen fixation efficiency. The mechanism works due to a transcriptional regulator called Fixation Under Nitrate (FUN).
• FUN is inactivated by zinc through the formation of large filament structures, which are dismantled to release active FUN when zinc levels are low.

                                                               Source: Down To earth

Ques :- With reference to Zinc, consider the following statements:

1. It has a relatively low melting and boiling point.

2. It is majorly used in galvanizing because of its corrosion resistance property.

3. Jharkhand has the largest reserves of Zinc in India.

How many of the above statements are correct?

A.One Only

B.Two only

C.All three

D.None

Answer B