scholarly journals Nanoparticles in Agriculture: Characterization, Uptake and Role in Mitigating Heat Stress

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shikha Yashveer ◽  
Neeru Redhu ◽  
Vikram Singh ◽  
Sonali Sangwan ◽  
Hembade Laxman ◽  
...  

Abiotic stresses like heat, drought, and salinity are among the major threats to sustainable crop production. These stresses induce numerous adverse effects in plants by impairing biochemical, physiological and molecular processes, eventually affecting plant growth, development and productivity. The rising temperature is one of the major causes of heat stress in agriculture. The variation in temperature during crop development has led to devastating agricultural losses in terms of yield. To adapt and mitigate these effects, germplasm scientists and agronomists aim to develop heat-tolerant varieties or cultivars. These efforts generally include the identification of alleles responsible for heat tolerance and their introgression into breeding populations through conventional or biotechnological methods. However, heat tolerance is a very complex physio-biochemical response of plants governed by a number of genes positioned at different loci. The accumulation of various additive gene effects into a single genotype is an extremely tedious and time-consuming process in both plant breeding and biotechnology. Recent advancements in agricultural nanotechnology have raised expectations for sustainable productivity without altering the genetic make-up of plants. In this milieu, the application of biologically active nanoparticles (NPs) could be a novel approach to enhance heat tolerance in crops. Recently, the NPs from silver, silicon, titanium and selenium have been proven valuable for plants to combat heat stress by altering their physiological and biochemical responses. Due to nano-scale size and the high surface area along with their slow and steady release, the NPs exert positive effects in plants through their growth-promoting and antioxidant capabilities. In this review, various technologies used for NPs characterization and their applications in agriculture have been discussed. The review further elaborates the uptake mechanism of NPs and their translocation in different plant parts along with the factors affecting them. This article also describes the role of metal or metal oxide NPs, as well as nano, encapsulated plant growth regulators and signal molecules in heat stress tolerance. The review will provide an insight to the scientists working in the area of agricultural sciences to explore new NPs to encounter different types of biotic and abiotic stresses.

Agronomy ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Domenico Ronga ◽  
Elisa Biazzi ◽  
Katia Parati ◽  
Domenico Carminati ◽  
Elio Carminati ◽  
...  

Microalgae are attracting the interest of agrochemical industries and farmers, due to their biostimulant and biofertiliser properties. Microalgal biostimulants (MBS) and biofertilisers (MBF) might be used in crop production to increase agricultural sustainability. Biostimulants are products derived from organic material that, applied in small quantities, are able to stimulate the growth and development of several crops under both optimal and stressful conditions. Biofertilisers are products containing living microorganisms or natural substances that are able to improve chemical and biological soil properties, stimulating plant growth, and restoring soil fertility. This review is aimed at reporting developments in the processing of MBS and MBF, summarising the biologically-active compounds, and examining the researches supporting the use of MBS and MBF for managing productivity and abiotic stresses in crop productions. Microalgae are used in agriculture in different applications, such as amendment, foliar application, and seed priming. MBS and MBF might be applied as an alternative technique, or used in conjunction with synthetic fertilisers, crop protection products and plant growth regulators, generating multiple benefits, such as enhanced rooting, higher crop yields and quality and tolerance to drought and salt. Worldwide, MBS and MBF remain largely unexploited, such that this study highlights some of the current researches and future development priorities.


Agriculture ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 626
Author(s):  
Tinashe Zenda ◽  
Songtao Liu ◽  
Anyi Dong ◽  
Huijun Duan

Sulphur plays crucial roles in plant growth and development, with its functions ranging from being a structural constituent of macro-biomolecules to modulating several physiological processes and tolerance to abiotic stresses. In spite of these numerous sulphur roles being well acknowledged, agriculture has paid scant regard for sulphur nutrition, until only recently. Serious problems related to soil sulphur deficiencies have emerged and the intensification of food, fiber, and animal production is escalating to feed the ever-increasing human population. In the wake of huge demand for high quality cereal and vegetable diets, sulphur can play a key role in augmenting the production, productivity, and quality of crops. Additionally, in light of the emerging problems of soil fertility exhaustion and climate change-exacerbated environmental stresses, sulphur assumes special importance in crop production, particularly under intensively cropped areas. Here, citing several relevant examples, we highlight, in addition to its plant biological and metabolism functions, how sulphur can significantly enhance crop productivity and quality, as well as acclimation to abiotic stresses. By this appraisal, we also aim to stimulate readers interests in crop sulphur research by providing priorities for future pursuance, including bettering our understanding of the molecular processes and dynamics of sulphur availability and utilization in plants, dissecting the role of soil rhizospherical microbes in plant sulphur transformations, enhancing plant phenotyping and diagnosis for nutrient deficiencies, and matching site-specific crop sulphur demands with fertilizer amendments in order to reduce nutrient use inefficiencies in both crop and livestock production systems. This will facilitate the proper utilization of sulphur in crop production and eventually enhance sustainable and environmentally friend food production.


2016 ◽  
Vol 141 (4) ◽  
pp. 363-372 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huifei Shen ◽  
Bing Zhao ◽  
Jingjing Xu ◽  
Xizi Zheng ◽  
Wenmei Huang

Rhododendrons (Rhododendron) are ornamental plants that exhibit poor thermotolerance. Salicylic acid (SA) and Ca2+ regulate the physiological and biochemical mechanisms in plants adapted to adverse environmental conditions. This study investigated the role of SA and CaCl2 in managing heat tolerance of Rhododendron ‘Fen Zhen Zhu’. Plants of the triennial Rhododendron ‘Fen Zhen Zhu’ were pretreated with SA and CaCl2, alone and combined. Following this pretreatment, the plants were subjected to 38/30 °C (day/night) incubation for 6 days, and then allowed to recover for 20 days under 25/17 °C (day/night) in a chamber. Changes in morphology were observed and recorded. Data were collected on plant chlorophyll content, malondialdehyde (MDA) content, H2O2 level, antioxidant enzyme activity, and total soluble protein content. The results revealed that the plant growth was considerably affected by heat stress, the leaves became brown and withered, and the plant defoliated. Under heat stress, chlorophyll content and total soluble protein levels decreased. Peroxidase (POD) activity and superoxide dismutase (SOD) also decreased, whereas the H2O2 and MDA content increased. Individual or combined application of SA and CaCl2 had a positive effect on plant growth, chlorophyll content, total soluble protein levels, and enzymatic antioxidant activity under heat stress. In general, the effect of the combined application of SA and CaCl2 was superior to individual application. In addition, treatment with high CaCl2 concentrations effectively alleviated the decrease in chlorophyll content. However, at low SA and CaCl2 concentrations, SOD and POD activity and total soluble protein accumulation increased whereas MDA and H2O2 levels decreased. These results suggest that SA and CaCl2 may interact to alleviate heat stress.


Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (17) ◽  
pp. 5116
Author(s):  
Muhammad Imran ◽  
Muhammad Aaqil Khan ◽  
Raheem Shahzad ◽  
Saqib Bilal ◽  
Murtaza Khan ◽  
...  

Global warming is impacting the growth and development of economically important but sensitive crops, such as soybean (Glycine max L.). Using pleiotropic signaling molecules, melatonin can relieve the negative effects of high temperature by enhancing plant growth and development as well as modulating the defense system against abiotic stresses. However, less is known about how melatonin regulates the phytohormones and polyamines during heat stress. Our results showed that high temperature significantly increased ROS and decreased photosynthesis efficiency in soybean plants. Conversely, pretreatment with melatonin increased plant growth and photosynthetic pigments (chl a and chl b) and reduced oxidative stress via scavenging hydrogen peroxide and superoxide and reducing the MDA and electrolyte leakage contents. The inherent stress defense responses were further strengthened by the enhanced activities of antioxidants and upregulation of the expression of ascorbate–glutathione cycle genes. Melatonin mitigates heat stress by increasing several biochemicals (phenolics, flavonoids, and proline), as well as the endogenous melatonin and polyamines (spermine, spermidine, and putrescine). Furthermore, the positive effects of melatonin treatment also correlated with a reduced abscisic acid content, down-regulation of the gmNCED3, and up-regulation of catabolic genes (CYP707A1 and CYP707A2) during heat stress. Contrarily, an increase in salicylic acid and up-regulated expression of the defense-related gene PAL2 were revealed. In addition, melatonin induced the expression of heat shock protein 90 (gmHsp90) and heat shock transcription factor (gmHsfA2), suggesting promotion of ROS detoxification via the hydrogen peroxide-mediated signaling pathway. In conclusion, exogenous melatonin improves the thermotolerance of soybean plants and enhances plant growth and development by activating antioxidant defense mechanisms, interacting with plant hormones, and reprogramming the biochemical metabolism.


2021 ◽  
Vol 49 (4) ◽  
pp. 12501
Author(s):  
Adnan RASHEED ◽  
Mahmoud F. SELEIMAN ◽  
Muhammad NAWAZ ◽  
Athar MAHMOOD ◽  
Muhammad RIZWAN ANWAR ◽  
...  

Rice is an important cereal crop worldwide that serves as a dietary component for half of the world’s population. Climate change, especially global warming is a rising threat to crop production and food security. Therefore, enhancing rice growth and yield is a crucial challenge in stress-prone environments. Frequent episodes of heat stress threaten rice production all over the world. Breeders and agronomists undertake several techniques to ameliorate the adverse effects of heat stress to safeguard global rice production. The selection of suitable sowing time application of plant hormones, osmoprotectants and utilization of appropriate fertilizers and signaling molecules are essential agronomic practices to mitigate the adverse effects of heat stress on rice. Likewise, developing genotypes with improved morphological, biochemical, and genetic attributes is feasible and practical way to respond to this challenge. The creation of more genetic recombinants and the identification of traits responsible for heat tolerance could allow the selection of early-flowering cultivars with resistance to heat stress. This review details the integration of several agronomic, conventional breeding, and molecular approaches like hybridization, pure line selection, master-assisted-selection (MAS), transgenic breeding and CRRISPR/Cas9 that promise rapid and efficient development and selection of heat-tolerant rice genotypes. Such information’s could be used to determine the future research directions for rice breeders and other researchers working to improve the heat tolerance in rice.


2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Waleed Fouad Abobatta

Plant stimulants is an organic substance and micro-organisms, used by small quantities, Biostimulants categorize according to their nature, modes of action, and types of effects on crops, there are main groups of plant stimulants include Protein hydrolysates, Humate substances, Seaweed extracts, Biopolymers (Chitosan and other polymers), and Microbial biostimulants like mycorrhizal, non-mycorrhizal fungi, Rhizobium, and Trichoderma. Horticulture crop production facing several challenges particularly abiotic stresses and malnutrition resulting in yield loss and affects negatively fruit quality. The main effects of plant stimulants due to its working as the auxin-like effect, enhancing Nitrogen uptake, and stimulate plant growth. There is various stimulation effects on horticulture crops including promote plant growth, increase plant tolerance for biotic and abiotic stresses. Applying plant stimulants to plants or the rhizosphere stimulating plant metabolic processes, increase the efficiency of the nutrients, and increase plant tolerance to abiotic stress, consequently, improving plant growth increases yield, and enhancing fruit quality.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 575
Author(s):  
Inmaculada Sampedro ◽  
Daniel Pérez-Mendoza ◽  
Laura Toral ◽  
Esther Palacios ◽  
César Arriagada ◽  
...  

Increase in soil salinity poses an enormous problem for agriculture and highlights the need for sustainable crop production solutions. Plant growth-promoting bacteria can be used to boost the growth of halophytes in saline soils. Salicornia is considered to be a promising salt-accumulating halophyte for capturing large amounts of carbon from the atmosphere. In addition, colonization and chemotaxis could play an important role in Salicornia-microbe interactions. In this study, the role of chemotaxis in the colonization of the halophilic siredophore-producing bacteria, Halomonas anticariensis FP35T, on Salicornia hispanica plants was investigated. The chemotactic response of FP35T to Salicornia root exudates showed optimum dependence at a salt concentration of 5 % NaCl (w/v). Oleanolic acid, the predominant compound in the exudates detected by HPLC and identified by UPLC-HRMS Q-TOF, acts as a chemoattractant. In vitro experiments demonstrated the enhanced positive effects of wild-type H. anticariensis strain FP35T on root length, shoot length, germination and the vigour index of S. hispanica. Furthermore, these positive effects partially depend on an active chemotaxis system, as the chemotaxis mutant H. anticariensis FP35 ΔcheA showed reduced plant growth promotion for all the parameters tested. Overall, our results suggest that chemotaxis responses to root exudates play an important role in interactions between Salicornia and halophilic bacteria, enhance their colonization and boost plant growth promotion. Preliminary results also indicate that root exudates have a positive impact on H. anticariensis FP35T biofilm formation under saline conditions, an effect which totally depends on the presence of the cheA gene.


Plants ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (9) ◽  
pp. 1055
Author(s):  
Krishan K. Verma ◽  
Xiu-Peng Song ◽  
Dong-Mei Li ◽  
Munna Singh ◽  
Vishnu D. Rajput ◽  
...  

Abiotic stresses are the major constraints in agricultural crop production across the globe. The use of some plant–microbe interactions are established as an environment friendly way of enhancing crop productivity, and improving plant development and tolerance to abiotic stresses by direct or indirect mechanisms. Silicon (Si) can also stimulate plant growth and mitigate environmental stresses, and it is not detrimental to plants and is devoid of environmental contamination even if applied in excess quantity. In the present review, we elaborate the interactive application of Si and plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPRs) as an ecologically sound practice to increase the plant growth rate in unfavorable situations, in the presence of abiotic stresses. Experiments investigating the combined use of Si and PGPRs on plants to cope with abiotic stresses can be helpful in the future for agricultural sustainability.


2015 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohsen Janmohammadi ◽  
Naser Sabaghnia

AbstractSilicon is one of the most widespread macro elements that have beneficial effects on plant growth. Although its positive effects on plant growth and development have been widely considered, little information is available about possibility of nano-silicon utilization in seed invigoration treatments. Enhanced seed germination may lead to improved stand establishment and it can play important role in successful crop production. Partial hydration of the seeds followed by dehydration in a controlled environment often results in rapid seed germination and more uniform seedling emergence compared to untreated seeds. In the present study, the effect of seed soaking in different concentration nano-silicon solutions (0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, 1 and 1.2 mM for 8 h) on germination characteristics of sunflower was investigated. Seed soaking in low concentration nano-silicon solutions (0.2 and 0.4 mM) significantly reduced days to 50% germination and mean germination time and improved root length, mean daily germination, seedling vigour index and final germination percentage. These results suggest that the incorporation of nano-silicon in priming solution, in an appropriate concentration, remarkably enhances germination performance and causes an effective invigoration of the seedling. These results underline the importance of pre-sowing seed soaking in diluted nano-silicon solutions for improving the germinability of sunflower.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 43-48
Author(s):  
Neha Sah ◽  
Dolma Sherpa

Wheat (Triticum aestivum) of the family Poaceae is an important cereal crop and is regarded as a basic source of calories and protein demands of the increasing population. With regards to change in global temperature, the impact of rising temperature on crop production is gaining concern worldwide. Among the various abiotic stresses observed in wheat, heat and drought are the major abiotic stresses. An increase in temperature results in the reduction of grain number, photosynthetic activity, chlorophyll content, and starch synthesis in the endosperm interrupting the important morphological, physiological, and biochemical processes of the plant causing considerable variation like reduction in grain weight per ear, single kernel weight, kernel number, grain size. Spikelet formation, seed size, etc. along with decreased plant size under morphological changes. Similarly, under physiological changes, water potential, photosynthesis, respiration, etc. are adversely affected due to heat stress in wheat. Content of starch, protein, and different types of amino acid present in wheat grain is also affected due to heat stress which comes under biochemical changes. Heat shock proteins (HSPs) and stay green are the mechanisms for the heat tolerance in wheat. The present review was carried out to summarize the various effects of heat stress on wheat at morpho-anatomical, physiological, and biochemical behavior with a brief discussion on suitable breeding strategies to improve the production of wheat crops.


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