Evaluation of the cytogenetic effects of Quantis biostimulant in Allium sativum cells

Abstract

The integration of plant biostimulants use to improve the efficiency of crop production can contribute to increasing the agronomic efficiency. Through this study we aimed to investigate the cytogenetic effects of the Quantis biostimulant on the meristematic cells of Allium sativum (garlic), at different concentrations (1, 1.5 and 2.5%) for 8 and 24 h. The results obtained showed that, at 1 and 1.5% concentration, Quantis induced the increase of the mitotic division intensity in A. sativum cells, both during at 8 and 24 h of treatment, compared to the untreated control variant. This fact suggests that, at the respective concentrations, Quantis improves the growth and development processes of the plant. In contrast, at 2.5% concentration, the index of mitotic division decreased by 36.6% (at 8 h), respectively by 64.9% (at 24 h of treatment), compared to the control. Also, at 2.5% Quantis, some chromosomal aberrations and nuclear anomalies were recorded: sticky and laggards’ chromosomes, C-mitosis, micronucleus, nuclear bud and nuclear dissolution. These results suggest that when is used in high concentrations, Quantis induces some cytotoxic and genotoxic effects on A. sativum, which can disrupt the plant growth.

Biostimulants and Their Role in the Development of Maize Crops

“…In maize crop, nutrient deficiencies at key growth stages can affect plant productivity (Bender et al, 2013). Plant biostimulants are substances that can improve crop productivity and quality, increase soil nutrient availability, improve plant nutrient use efficiency, and promote soil organic matter decomposition and humification (Bonciu et al, 2020;Caradonia et al, 2019;Olaru et al, 2020). Recently, biostimulants are widely used in production because they can improve the productivity and quality of production, and can meet the economic and sustainability requirements of production.…”

Assessing the Effect of Plant Biostimulants and Nutrient-Rich Foliar Sprays on Walnut Nucleolar Activity and Protein Content (Juglans regia L.)

“…Given the wide use and offer of commercial biostimulants or fertilisers to organic and conventional agriculture, it is necessary to carry out studies that deepen the knowledge of their impacts on the target crops and the environment [16,24,39,40]. Furthermore, the diverse sources of materials and the uncertain modes of action of biostimulants require the development of approaches that ensure the fast selection of the most appropriate product(s) for each species, variety, and/or environmental growing conditions [24,40]. Indeed, a biostimulant on the market should only be considered adequate under some conditions [40].…”

“…Furthermore, the diverse sources of materials and the uncertain modes of action of biostimulants require the development of approaches that ensure the fast selection of the most appropriate product(s) for each species, variety, and/or environmental growing conditions [24,40]. Indeed, a biostimulant on the market should only be considered adequate under some conditions [40].…”

“…Therefore, the cytogenetic monitoring of dividing mesophyll or root meristem cells, which are plant organs exposed to stressful conditions, constitutes a suitable and fast approach to selecting adequate foliar treatments [24,25] or the most stress-tolerant genotypes [26,27,33]. Moreover, such studies can also highlight cytotoxicity, which is common when biostimulants or fertilisers are used in dosages above the manufacturer's recommendation [35,[37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44]. Despite the common assumption held by producers of fertilisers and different authors that boron stimulates growing tissues [19,42] as a consequence of the enhancement of cell division, the leaf mitotic index was low despite collecting young leaves in all treatments.…”