Seed nanopriming by silicon oxide improves drought stress alleviation potential in wheat plants

Abstract

The present study explored the effectiveness of SiO2 nanoparticles (NPs) as seed priming agent (15 mg L–1) to improve drought tolerance in the wheat cultivar HI 1544. Seed germination studies showed significant enhancement in the rate of seed germination, seedling growth and vigour, seed water uptake, and amylase activity in nanoprimed (NP) seeds compared with unprimed (UP) seeds. Pot experiments using wheat plants subjected to drought stress showed that SiO2 nanopriming enhanced the ability of wheat plants to withstand water deficit conditions by balancing the production of reactive oxygen species and the activity of enzymatic antioxidants like peroxidase, catalase, and superoxide dismutase. Investigations of photosynthetic parameters showed that under drought conditions, nanoprimed plants had a higher number of active reaction centres, high absorbance, trapping, and electron transport rates compared with unprimed plants. These results suggest the effects of silicon nanopriming in enhancing drought tolerance in wheat by alleviating drought induced inhibition of plant photosynthetic machinery and maintaining biochemical balance, ultimately resulting in an increase in biomass production. Results revealed the use of silicon oxide nanopriming to be a good option to increase drought tolerance in wheat plants.

Nanosilicon alters oxidative stress and defence reactions in plants: a meta-analysis, mechanism and perspective

“…S1 †). Moreover, Si NM application decreased oxidative stress in plants by 23.7% and 27.6% under abiotic and biotic stress conditions, respectively, but such an inhibitory effect was not significantly different between abiotic and biotic stress (p = 0.392, Fig. S2 Regarding the plant defence system, we found that Si NM addition, across all studies significantly enhanced the activity of antioxidant enzymes, the concentration of antioxidant metabolites, and the expression of defence-related genes by 16.3%, 15.2% and 178.2%, respectively, but had an overall non-significant effect on defence enzyme activity (Fig.…”

“…17 One major element of the Earth's crust is silicon (Si), and the application of bulk Si, as well as its nanoform, has been shown to increase and sustain plant growth. [18][19][20] Si MNs have indeed been shown to activate the antioxidant system of plants, in turn reducing oxidative stress, and ultimately enhancing plant resistance against abiotic [21][22][23][24] and biotic stresses. 16,25 Therefore, the application of Si NMs in mitigating plant stress and promoting plant growth has attracted extensive attention.…”

How Silicon Alleviates the Effect of Abiotic Stresses During Seed Germination: A Review

“…Similar findings were reported in C. sativus (Ning et al 2020). In wheat, seed priming with Si nanoparticles increased amylase activity under drought stress (Rai-Kalal et al 2021).…”

Molecular dynamics of seed priming at the crossroads between basic and applied research

“…Promising results were reported when ZnO-based NPs were used to increase seed germination in lettuce (Rawashdeh et al 2020 ). NPs containing SiO 2 used as seed priming agents improved drought tolerance in wheat (Rai-Kalal et al 2021 ). Nanoscale micronutrient iron (α-Fe 2 O 3 ), prepared via co-precipitation with the marine macroalga Turbinaria ornata and used as a priming agent, could enhance seed germination in rice and maize (Prerna et al 2021 ).…”