Community gardens are "green oases" of recent cities with many benefits for human society. From a human health perspective, these benefits can be damaged by chemical contamination of soil and cultivated vegetables. Using geochemical approaches, this study characterised (i) total metal(loid) concentrations in soils and two commonly grown vegetables in urban community gardens (Bratislava, Slovakia), (ii) gastrointestinal bioaccessibility using a modified physiologically based extraction test (PBET), and (iii) stable lead (Pb) isotopes in order to identify sources of metal(loid)s, solubilisation in the human body and migration of Pb from soil to vegetables. While some soils could be considered contaminated when compared to the Slovak legislation for agricultural soil, the bioaccessibility of metal(loid)s did not exceed 20% in the intestinal phase, with the exception of cadmium (Cd). Tomatoes and lettuce contained low total and bioaccessible concentrations of metal(loid)s, being safe for people who consume their own grown vegetables. There were differences in Pb isotope composition among bulk soils, vegetables and bioaccessible Pb, with less radiogenic Pb being preferentially mobilised. Statistical methods considering the compositional nature of the geochemical data and the enrichment factor (EF) distinguished well metal(loid)s of natural origin (As, Co, Cr, Fe, Mn, Ni, V) from those with anthropogenic contributions. This research has shown the usefulness of integrating different methodologies to better understand the geochemistry of metal(loid)s in urban soils with their highly diversified sources.

Department of Applied Mathematics and Statistics Faculty of Mathematics Physics and Informatics Comenius University in Bratislava Mlynská dolina 1 842 48 Bratislava Slovak Republic

Department of Geochemistry Faculty of Natural Sciences Comenius University in Bratislava Ilkovičova 6 842 15 Bratislava Slovak Republic

Institute of Geochemistry Mineralogy and Mineral Resources Faculty of Science Charles University Albertov 6 128 43 Prague 2 Czech Republic

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Characterization of the inhalable fraction (< 10 μm) of soil from highly urbanized and industrial environments: magnetic measurements, bioaccessibility, Pb isotopes and health risk assessment