Influence of Nano Silicon and Nano Selenium on Root Characters, Growth, Ion Selectivity, Yield, and Yield Components of Rice (Oryza sativa L.) under Salinity Conditions

Shimaa A Badawy; Bassiouni A Zayed; Sherif M A Bassiouni; Ayman H A Mahdi; Ali Majrashi; Esmat F Ali; Mahmoud F Seleiman

doi:10.3390/plants10081657

Influence of Nano Silicon and Nano Selenium on Root Characters, Growth, Ion Selectivity, Yield, and Yield Components of Rice (Oryza sativa L.) under Salinity Conditions

Plants (Basel). 2021 Aug 11;10(8):1657. doi: 10.3390/plants10081657.

Authors

Shimaa A Badawy¹, Bassiouni A Zayed², Sherif M A Bassiouni², Ayman H A Mahdi³, Ali Majrashi⁴, Esmat F Ali⁴, Mahmoud F Seleiman^{5

6}

Affiliations

¹ Agronomy Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Kafrelshiekh University, Kafrelsheikh 33516, Egypt.
² Rice Research and Training Center RRTC, Agriculture Research Center, Field Crops Research Institute, Sakha 33717, Egypt.
³ Agronomy Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Beni-Suef University, Beni Suef 62521, Egypt.
⁴ Department of Biology, College of Science, Taif University, P.O. Box 11099, Taif 21944, Saudi Arabia.
⁵ Plant Production Department, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2460, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia.
⁶ Department of Crop Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, Menoufifia University, Shibin El-Kom 32514, Egypt.

Abstract

Rice production under salinity stress is a critical challenge facing many countries, particularly those in arid and semi-arid regions. This challenge could be handled by applying novel approaches to overcome yield limiting factors and improve resource use efficiency. The usage of nanoparticles (NPs) could be a beneficial approach to managing the growing problem of soil salinity. The aim of our study was to investigate the advantageous effects of soaking and foliar application of silicon (Si) and selenium (Se), (NPs-Si at 12.5 mg L^-1 and NPs-Se at 6.25 mg L^-1) on root characteristics, moropho-physiological traits, and yields of two rice varieties (i.e., Giza 177 as a salt sensitive and Giza 178 as a salt tolerant) grown in saline soil compared to untreated plants (control treatment). Results showed that soaking NPs-Se resulted in the highest value of root thickness for Giza 178 (0.90 mm, 0.95 mm) and root volume (153.30 cm³, 154.30 cm³), while Giza 177 recorded 0.83 mm, 0.81 mm for root thickness and 143.30 cm³, 141.30 cm³ for root volume in the 2018 and 2019 seasons, respectively. Soaking NPs-Se, NPs-Si and foliar application of NPs-Se at BT resulted in the highest relative water content and dry matter, while foliar application of NPs-Si at BT gave the highest leaf area index of rice plants compared to the other treatments. Giza 178 (i.e., salt tolerant variety) significantly surpassed Giza 177 (i.e., salt sensitive variety) in the main yield components such as panicle number and filled grains/ panicle, while Giza 177 significantly exceeded Giza 178 in the panicle weight, 1000-grain weight, and unfilled grains number/ panicle. Soaking NPs-Se and foliar application of NPs-Si at BT resulted in the highest grain yield of 5.41 and 5.34 t ha^-1 during 2018 and 5.00 and 4.91 t ha^-1 during 2019, respectively. The salt sensitive variety (Giza 177) had the highest Na⁺ leaf content and Na⁺/K⁺ ratio as well as the lowest K+ leaf content during both seasons. Applying nano nutrients such as NPs-Si and NPs-Se improved the yield components of the salt sensitive variety (Giza 177) by enhancing its ion selectivity. Both NPs-Si and NPs-Se had almost the same mode of action to mitigate the harmful salinity and enhance plant growth, and subsequently improved the grain yield. In summary, the application of NPs-Si and NPs-Se is recommended as a result of their positive influence on rice growth and yield as well as minimizing the negative effects of salt stress.

Keywords: Oryza sativa L.; ion selectivity; nano-selenium; nano-silicon; productivity; salinity.

Grants and funding

TURSP2020/110/Taif University