Interactions of Silicon With Essential and Beneficial Elements in Plants

Abstract

Silicon (Si) is not classified as an essential element for plants, but numerous studies have demonstrated its beneficial effects in a variety of species and environmental conditions, including low nutrient availability. Application of Si shows the potential to increase nutrient availability in the rhizosphere and root uptake through complex mechanisms, which still remain unclear. Silicon-mediated transcriptional regulation of element transporters for both root acquisition and tissue homeostasis has recently been suggested as an important strategy, varying in detail depending on plant species and nutritional status. Here, we summarize evidence of Si-mediated acquisition, uptake and translocation of nutrients: nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), sulfur (S), iron (Fe), zinc (Zn), manganese (Mn), copper (Cu), boron (B), chlorine (Cl), and nickel (Ni) under both deficiency and excess conditions. In addition, we discuss interactions of Si-with beneficial elements: aluminum (Al), sodium (Na), and selenium (Se). This review also highlights further research needed to improve understanding of Si-mediated acquisition and utilization of nutrients and vice versa nutrient status-mediated Si acquisition and transport, both processes which are of high importance for agronomic practice (e.g., reduced use of fertilizers and pesticides).

Iodine and Selenium Biofortification of Chervil Plants Treated with Silicon Nanoparticles

“…Different investigations indicate that Se and I biofortification, as well as bulk and nano-Si application, may affect macro-and trace elements accumulation in plants [10,23,40]. The data reported in Table 5 reveal that among macro-elements significant changes occurred predominantly for Na, whereas the concentrations of essential elements, such as P, K, Ca and Mg, were not generally affected by Se, I or Si content in chervil shoots.…”

“…Up to date, alleviation of plant salt stress using nano-Si was reported only in the case of soil Si supplementation, which reduced NaCl accumulation, thus promoting root growth [48,49] and decreasing root-to-shoot translocation of Na + [50]. Notably, studies of Si interaction with other macro-elements were carried out only on soil application of bulk Si [23], while no information is available on the foliar effect of nano-Si.…”

“…The improvement of rice growth due to foliar Se and Si nanoparticles supplementation under salinity stress [12], as well as the beneficial effect of these elements on the production of other plant species [16][17][18][19], provides the basis for investigating further opportunities in this direction. Restricted data regarding the efficiency of foliar nano-Si supplementation [19][20][21][22], scant information on the mechanism of the Se-Si relationship [23], and lack of information relevant to the I-Si interaction, especially the nano-Si effect, suggest the need to appropriately investigate the interaction peculiarities between these elements.…”

Editorial: Nutrient Interactions in Plants

“…All these elements interact in a direct and/or indirect manner. In some cases, the deficiency or excess of one element can affect the uptake of other(s), thus conditioning their proper uptake and efficient utilization (Astolfi et al, 2021;Bernal and Kramer, 2021;Pavlovic et al, 2021;Yu et al;Zhou et al). For instance, S deficiency can limit Fe acquisition (Astolfi et al, 2021) while P deficiency can promote it (Figure 1; García et al).…”

Suppression of Bacterial Leaf Spot by Green Synthesized Silica Nanoparticles and Antagonistic Yeast Improves Growth, Productivity and Quality of Sweet Pepper

“…At the same time, nano-SiO 2 deposition in leaf tissue improves plant defense against pathogens [51]. In addition, silicon-mediated acquisition, uptake, and translocation of nutrients such as nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), sulfur (S), iron (Fe), zinc (Zn), manganese (Mn), copper (Cu), and boron (B) under both deficiency and excess conditions [52]. Silicon can also increase plant resistance to bacterial pathogens by increasing the activity of the Polyphenol oxidase (PPO) enzyme in plant leaves [53].…”