Chitosan Nanoparticles Inactivate Alfalfa Mosaic Virus Replication and Boost Innate Immunity in Nicotiana glutinosa Plants

Abstract

Plant viral infection is one of the most severe issues in food security globally, resulting in considerable crop production losses. Chitosan is a well-known biocontrol agent against a variety of plant infections. However, research on combatting viral infections is still in its early stages. The current study investigated the antiviral activities (protective, curative, and inactivation) of the prepared chitosan/dextran nanoparticles (CDNPs, 100 µg mL−1) on Nicotiana glutinosa plants. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) and dynamic light scattering analysis revealed that the synthesized CDNPs had a uniform, regular sphere shapes ranging from 20 to 160 nm in diameter, with an average diameter of 91.68 nm. The inactivation treatment was the most effective treatment, which resulted in a 100% reduction in the alfalfa mosaic virus (AMV, Acc# OK413670) accumulation level. On the other hand, the foliar application of CDNPs decreased disease severity and significantly reduced viral accumulation levels by 70.43% and 61.65% in protective and curative treatments, respectively, under greenhouse conditions. Additionally, the induction of systemic acquired resistance, increasing total carbohydrates and total phenolic contents, as well as triggering the transcriptional levels of peroxidase, pathogen-related protein-1, and phenylalanine ammonia-lyase were observed. In light of the results, we propose that the potential application of CDNPs could be an eco-friendly approach to enhance yield and a more effective therapeutic elicitor for disease management in plants upon induction of defense systems.

Foliar Application of Nanoclay Promotes Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) Growth and Induces Systemic Resistance against Potato Virus Y

“…The physical barrier created by lignin deposition is more effective at preventing viral infection [ 72 ]. Our results match those of other studies [ 52 , 73 ] that considered the ability of different nanoparticles to increase the activity of plant enzymes in response to ROS. Additionally, ROS can harm the plant’s membrane lipids, proteins, and DNA, leading to symptom development rather than defense or acclimation if the timing and magnitude of ROS accumulation are not tightly controlled by the plant’s antioxidant system [ 74 , 75 ].…”

“…In comparison, the shoot and fresh root weight in treatment with standard nanoclay 48 h before PVY inoculation significantly decreased (2.23 g and 0.81 g, respectively) compared with the potato plant control ( Table 4 ). In this context, several previous reports have shown that the foliar application of nanoparticles significantly enhanced plant growth, decreased disease severity, and decreased the accumulation levels of many plant viruses inside plant tissues [ 51 , 52 , 53 ].…”

Trichoderma hamatum Strain Th23 Promotes Tomato Growth and Induces Systemic Resistance against Tobacco Mosaic Virus

“…On the other hand, the Th23 treatment or Th23 + TMV treatment triggered the expression level of PR-1 with significant increases of 385.06% and 203.45%, respectively, when compared with the TMV treatment. Salicylic acid (SA) is a well-known plant signal phytohormone molecule, and its role in plant immune activation has been documented for more than two decades [ 20 , 93 , 94 ]. Furthermore, several studies have shown that PR-1 is an SA marker gene, an important regulator of SAR, and a predictor of early plant defensive response [ 93 , 95 ].…”

Defense Responses and Metabolic Changes Involving Phenylpropanoid Pathway and PR Genes in Squash (Cucurbita pepo L.) following Cucumber mosaic virus Infection

“…Using a Nano SPECTROstar spectrophotometer and gel electrophoresis, the quality of the RNA was determined. One µg of total RNA (pretreated with DNase I) from each sample was utilized as a template for cDNA synthesis, as reported previously [ 19 ]. Different primers were used to detect the expression of pathogenesis (PR) and polyphenolic-related genes listed in Table 1 .…”