Effects of spraying nano-materials on the absorption of metal(loid)s in cucumber

IET Nanobiotechnol. 2019 Sep;13(7):712-719. doi: 10.1049/iet-nbt.2019.0060.

Abstract

This report investigates the spraying of nano-silica and fullerene on cucumber leaves to expose their ability to reduce the toxicity and uptake of metal(loid)s. Cucumber seedlings were randomly divided into six treatment groups: 10 mg/L nano-SiO2, 20 mg/L nano-SiO2, 10 mg/L Fullerene, 20 mg/L Fullerene, 5 mg/L Fullerene + 5 mg/L nano-SiO2, and 10 mg/L Fullerene + 10 mg/L nano-SiO2. Nano-silica-treated plants exhibited evidence of the potential mitigation of metal(loid)s poisoning. Specifically, results showed that 20 mg/L of nano-silica promoted Cd uptake by plants; comparatively, 10 mg/L of nano-silica did not significantly increase the silicon content in plants. Both low-concentration combined treatment and low-concentration fullerene groups inhibited metal(loid)s uptake by plants. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was then used to observe the surface morphology of cucumber leaves. Significant differences were observed on disease resistance in plants across the different nano-material conditions. Collectively, these findings suggest that both nano-silica materials and fullerene have the potential to control metal(loid)s toxicity in plants.

MeSH terms

  • Absorption, Physiological / drug effects*
  • Aerosols / pharmacology*
  • Arsenic / pharmacokinetics
  • Arsenic / toxicity
  • Biodegradation, Environmental
  • Cadmium / pharmacokinetics
  • Cadmium / toxicity
  • Cucumis sativus / drug effects
  • Cucumis sativus / growth & development
  • Cucumis sativus / metabolism*
  • Materials Testing
  • Metals, Heavy / pharmacokinetics*
  • Nanostructures* / administration & dosage
  • Nanostructures* / chemistry
  • Plant Development / drug effects
  • Plant Leaves / drug effects
  • Plant Leaves / growth & development
  • Plant Leaves / metabolism
  • Plant Roots / drug effects
  • Plant Roots / growth & development
  • Plant Roots / metabolism
  • Silicon Dioxide / chemistry
  • Silicon Dioxide / pharmacology
  • Soil / chemistry
  • Soil Pollutants / pharmacokinetics*
  • Soil Pollutants / toxicity

Substances

  • Aerosols
  • Metals, Heavy
  • Soil
  • Soil Pollutants
  • Cadmium
  • Silicon Dioxide
  • Arsenic