Effect of Nanoparticles Surface Charge on the Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Roots Development and Their Movement into the Root Cells and Protoplasts

Abstract

Increasing usage of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) in different industrial areas inevitably leads to their release into the environment. Thus, living organisms, including plants, may be exposed to a direct contact with nanoparticles (NPs). Despite the growing amount of research on this topic, our knowledge about NPs uptake by plants and their influence on different developmental processes is still insufficient. The first physical barrier for NPs penetration to the plant body is a cell wall which protects cytoplasm from external factors and environmental stresses. The absence of a cell wall may facilitate the internalization of various particles including NPs. Our studies have shown that AuNPs, independently of their surface charge, did not cross the cell wall of Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) roots. However, the research carried out with using light and transmission electron microscope revealed that AuNPs with different surface charge caused diverse changes in the root’s histology and ultrastructure. Therefore, we verified whether this is only the wall which protects cells against particles penetration and for this purpose we used protoplasts culture. It has been shown that plasma membrane (PM) is not a barrier for positively charged (+) AuNPs and negatively charged (−) AuNPs, which passage to the cell.

Gold Nanoparticles-Induced Modifications in Cell Wall Composition in Barley Roots

“…We report an increase in the occurrence of the JIM8 epitope in the RA under different AuNP conditions and this observation coincides with previously presented works on Arabidopsis roots that had been treated with (+) AuNP [17]. Similar results were also observed in plants that had been subjected to salinity stress, e.g., in the leaves of Medicago sativa [140] or embryogenic suspension cultures of Dactylis glomerata L. [141].…”

“…At present, nanotoxicology is a new, widely studied field of research. To date, it has been well documented that plants can uptake and accumulate NP, which could cause histological, morphological, physiological, and genotoxic changes in the plant system [10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18].…”

Nanoparticle-Based Sustainable Agriculture and Food Science: Recent Advances and Future Outlook

“…Similarly, Milewska-Hendel et al comprehensively demonstrate the surface charge-dependent uptake of AuNPs in roots and its transportation from roots to shoots (Milewska-Hendel et al, 2019). It is thought that negatively charged NPs assist both symplastic as well as apoplastic transport into the vascular system through roots to shoots.…”

Silver nanoparticles coated with chitosan against Fusarium oxysporum causing the tomato wilt

“…A study shows that shoots of Cucurbita pepo presented 4.7 more silver concentration in AgNP treated plants that those treated with a bulk solution at the same concentrations, considering a greater silver release from the nanoparticles as the main reason (Stampoulis et al, 2009). Another study has demonstrated the uptake of AgNP through the roots of Arabidopsis thaliana, where although most of the nanoparticles adhere to the root boundary, their transport to shoots was also observed (Milewska-Hendel et al, 2019). The possible mechanism of nanoparticles absorption from plants can be through primary roots or laterial roots.…”