Impact of Coating of Urea with Bacillus-Augmented Zinc Oxide on Wheat Grown under Salinity Stress

Abstract

Zinc (Zn) availability is limited in salt-affected soils due to high soil pH and calcium concentrations causing Zn fixation. The application of synthetic Zn fertilizer is usually discouraged due to the high cost and low Zn use efficiency. However, salt-tolerant Zn-solubilizing bacteria (ZSB) are capable of solubilizing fixed fractions of Zn and improving fertilizer use efficiency. In the current study, a product was formulated by coating urea with bioaugmented zinc oxide (ZnO) to improve wheat productivity under a saline environment. The promising ZSB strain Bacillus sp. AZ6 was used for bioaugmentation on ZnO powder and termed as Bacillus sp. AZ6-augmented ZnO (BAZ). The experiment was conducted in pots by applying urea granules after coating with BAZ, to evaluate its effects on wheat physiology, antioxidant activity, and productivity under saline (100 mM NaCl) and non-saline (0 mM NaCl) conditions. The results revealed that the application of BAZ-coated urea alleviated salt stress through improving the seed germination, plant height, root length, photosynthetic rate, transpiration rate, stomatal conductance, soil plant analysis development (SPAD) value, number of tillers and grains, spike length, spike weight, 1000-grain weight, antioxidant activity (APX, GPX, GST, GR, CAT, and SOD), and NPK contents in the straw and grains of the wheat plants. Moreover, it also enhanced the Zn contents in the shoots and grains of wheat by up to 29.1 and 16.5%, respectively, over absolute control, under saline conditions. The relationships and variation among all the studied morpho-physio and biochemical attributes of wheat were also studied by principal component (PC) and correlation analysis. Hence, the application of such potential products may enhance nutrient availability and Zn uptake in wheat under salt stress. Therefore, the current study suggests the application of BAZ-coated urea for enhancing wheat’s physiology, antioxidant system, nutrient efficiency, and productivity effectively and economically.

Potential of Integrated Use of <i>Bacillus</i> sp. AZ6 and Organic Waste for Zinc Bio-Activation to Improve Physiological Attributes of Maize

“…Similarly, Nazir et al [37] and Nazir et al [18] also reported an increase in rice and wheat productivity and biofortification through the application of urea coated with bio-activated ZnO formulations. Ain et al [19] also reported the alleviation of salinity stress in wheat through the application of urea coated with bioaugmented ZnO.…”

“…The efficiency of ZnO (an insoluble and costeffective source) can be enhanced through bio-activation with bacteria and organic amendments [14,15]. The bio-activation of Zn through Zn solubilizing bacteria (ZSB) strains had been previously reported by Hussain et al [16], Hussain et al [17], Nazir et al [18], Ain et al [19]. Generally, the ZSB plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) bio-activate Zn through chelating the metal compounds by protonation and production of organic acids [20].…”

Effect of zinc nanoparticles seed priming and foliar application on the growth and physio-biochemical indices of spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.) under salt stress

“…The number of leaves was recorded maximum at 0.3% priming of ZnNPs as observed by Salama et al [ 49 ]. It is stated by Ain et al [ 50 ] and Itroutwar et al [ 51 ] that application of ZnNPs is the best source of Zn fertilizer for growth.…”

Controlled Release Fertilizers: A Review on Coating Materials and Mechanism of Release

“…The world population is forecasted to increase by one third or 2.3 billion in 2050, despite the slower growth rate compared to the last four decades [ 1 , 2 ]. As the population keeps blooming, food demand is also expected to rise.…”