The frequency, duration, and intensity of heat waves
(HWs) within
terrestrial ecosystems are increasing, posing potential risks to agricultural
production. Cerium dioxide nanoparticles (CeO2 NPs) are
garnering increasing attention in the field of agriculture because
of their potential to enhance photosynthesis and improve stress tolerance.
In the present study, CeO2 NPs decreased the grain yield,
grain protein content, and amino acid content by 16.2, 23.9, and 10.4%,
respectively, under HW conditions. Individually, neither the CeO2 NPs nor HWs alone negatively affected rice production or
triggered stomatal closure. However, under HW conditions, CeO2 NPs decreased the stomatal conductance and net photosynthetic
rate by 67.6 and 33.5%, respectively. Moreover, stomatal closure in
the presence of HWs and CeO2 NPs triggered reactive oxygen
species (ROS) accumulation (increased by 32.3–57.1%), resulting
in chloroplast distortion and reduced photosystem II activity (decreased
by 9.4–36.4%). Metabolic, transcriptomic, and quantitative
real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) analyses revealed that,
under HW conditions, CeO2 NPs activated a stomatal closure
pathway mediated by abscisic acid (ABA) and ROS by regulating gene
expression (PP2C, NCED4, HPCA1, and RBOHD were upregulated, while CYP707A and ALMT9 were downregulated) and
metabolite levels (the content of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA)
increased while that of gallic acid decreased). These findings elucidate
the mechanism underlying the yield and nutritional losses induced
by stomatal closure in the presence of CeO2 NPs and HWs
and thus highlight the potential threat posed by CeO2 NPs
to rice production during HWs.