The Role of Nanoparticles in Response of Plants to Abiotic Stress at Physiological, Biochemical, and Molecular Levels

Abstract

In recent years, the global agricultural system has been unfavorably impacted by adverse environmental changes. These changes in the climate, in turn, have altered the abiotic conditions of plants, affecting plant growth, physiology and production. Abiotic stress in plants is one of the main obstacles to global agricultural production and food security. Therefore, there is a need for the development of novel approaches to overcome these problems and achieve sustainability. Nanotechnology has emerged as one such novel approach to improve crop production, through the utilization of nanoscale products, such as nanofertilizer, nanofungicides, nanoherbicides and nanopesticides. Their ability to cross cellular barriers makes nanoparticles suitable for their application in agriculture. Since they are easily soluble, smaller, and effective for uptake by plants, nanoparticles are widely used as a modern agricultural tool. The implementation of nanoparticles has been found to be effective in improving the qualitative and quantitative aspects of crop production under various biotic and abiotic stress conditions. This review discusses various abiotic stresses to which plants are susceptible and highlights the importance of the application of nanoparticles in combating abiotic stress, in addition to the major physiological, biochemical and molecular-induced changes that can help plants tolerate stress conditions. It also addresses the potential environmental and health impacts as a result of the extensive use of nanoparticles.

Unlocking the Potential of Nano-Enabled Precision Agriculture for Efficient and Sustainable Farming

“…Nanoparticles based on iron oxides, phosphates, and goethite have been used to reduce the harmful effects of toxic elements and for environmental remediation, as they are effective in immobilizing and sequestering contaminants like As and Cd through sorption processes [78][79][80]. The application of nanoparticles has been reviewed by Tariq et al [81] and Al-Khayri et al [82].…”

Unveiling Innovative Approaches to Mitigate Metals/Metalloids Toxicity for Sustainable Agriculture

“…NPs can be used in agriculture because of their capacity to cross cellular barriers. NPs have gained popularity as an innovative agricultural tool because of their high solubility, compact size, and effective plant absorption (Al‐Khayri et al, 2023b). These characteristics, including their ability to increase abiotic stress resistance, make NPs attractive for agricultural applications (Figure 3B) (Hayat et al, 2023).…”

Judicial nutrient management for sustainable production of groundnut: A Review

“…Mg activates enzymes which affect plant growth and vigour (Chakraborty and Bose, 2020). Sireesha and Dawson., (2022) [115] observed in their experiment that among (10,15,20) kg Mg ha -1 , Mg 20 kg ha -1 resulted maximum growth and growth attributing characters, that is 5% more plant height, 11.3% more nodules plant -1 , 9.2% more dry weight (g plant -1 ) 4.5% more crop growth rate. This result obtains may be because of adequate amount of magnesium increases photosynthetic efficiency and promote healthy growth (Al-Juthery et al, 2021) [9] .…”

“…Groundnut yield is also increased by S through improved chlorophyll synthesis resulting in higher growth (Ariraman et al, 2020) [96] . The element sometime helps to withstand cold, root growth, and the photosynthesis process (Al-Khayri et al, 2023) [10] . Dileep et al, (2021) [34] found in their experiment that among (20,30,40) kg S ha -1 dose ,40 kg ha -1 S helps to obtained maximum plant height (59.31 cm), highest dry matter accumulation (56.73 gm), maximum number of nodules plant -1 (47.53), while maximum crop growth rate (13.82 g/m 2 /day) and relative growth rate (0.008 g/m 2 /day) obtained @ 30 kg ha -1 S. Bhadiyatar et al, (2022) [16] found in their experiment that S did not influences as much on height and plant population in groundnut crop.…”

“…Magnesium (Mg): Sireesha and Dawson., (2022) [115] observed in their experiment that among (10,15,20) kg Mg ha -1 , 20 kg Mg ha -1 , helps to obtain the greatest number of pods plant -1 (25.80), kernels pod -1 (2.4), seed index (46.27 g), seed yield (2.48 kg ha -1 ), haulm yield (5.51 t ha -1 ), harvest index (31.07%) were obtained with the application of 60 kg Mg ha -1 .…”