Iron Oxide and Silicon Nanoparticles Modulate Mineral Nutrient Homeostasis and Metabolism in Cadmium-Stressed Phaseolus vulgaris

• DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2022.806781
• Publication Date: 2022-03-24T01:31:01Z
• Authors: Lyubka Koleva; Aisha Umar; Nasim Ahmad Yasin; Anis Ali Shah; Manzer H. Siddiqui; Saud Alamri; Luqman Riaz; Ali Raza; Talha Javed; Zunera Shabbir
• Keywords: antioxidant; cadmium; Spermidine; growth; polyamines; Organic chemistry; Plant Science; Horticulture; Biochemistry; SB1-1110; Agricultural and Biological Sciences; Food science; stress; 03 medical and health sciences; Nanoparticle; Putrescine; Nanotechnology; Molecular Responses to Abiotic Stress in Plants; Biology; Phaseolus; 2. Zero hunger; FOS: Nanotechnology; 0303 health sciences; potassium; Plant culture; Life Sciences; Role of Silicon in Plant Biology and Ecology; Plant Stress Resistance; Materials science; Nuclear chemistry; Chemistry; Enzyme; Mechanisms of Aluminum Toxicity and Tolerance in Plants; Antioxidant; Cadmium

The application of nanoparticles (NPs) has been proved as an efficient and promising technique for mitigating a wide range of stressors in plants. The present study elucidates the synergistic effect of iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) and silicon nanoparticles (SiNPs) in the attenuation of Cd toxicity inPhaseolus vulgaris. Seeds ofP. vulgariswere treated with IONPs (10 mg/L) and SiNPs (20 mg/L). Seedlings of uniform size were transplanted to pots for 40 days. The results demonstrated that nanoparticles (NPs) enhanced growth, net photosynthetic rate, and gas exchange attributes inP. vulgarisplants grown in Cd-contaminated soil. Synergistic application of IONPs and SiNPs raised not only K+content, but also biosynthesis of polyamines (PAs), which alleviated Cd stress inP. vulgarisseedlings. Additionally, NPs decreased malondialdehyde (MDA) content and electrolyte leakage (EL) inP. vulgarisplants exposed to Cd stress. These findings suggest that stress alleviation was mainly attributed to the enhanced accumulation of K+content, improved antioxidant defense system, and higher spermidine (Spd) and putrescine (Put) levels. It is suggested that various forms of NPs can be applied synergistically to minimize heavy metal stress, thus increasing crop production under stressed conditions.