Wheat Sprouts (IMAGE) St. Petersburg State University Caption Irina Shtangeeva is a researcher at the Department of Soil Science and Soil Ecology, St Petersburg University. She has studied the ability of wheat and couch grass to accumulate toxic substances. Both plants were capable of absorbing various chemical elements from contaminated soils. Although the plants were able to accumulate high concentrations of toxicants, they could survive under negative environmental conditions Credit SPbU Usage Restrictions None License Licensed content Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.