Durian helps rice plants thrive in salty soil
image:
Rice seedlings sprayed with a carbon dot mixture derived from durian peels (far right) were heartier than untreated seedlings (second from left) and expressed genes that improved salt tolerance and photosynthesis without genetically modifying the plant.
view moreCredit: Adapted from ACS Nano 2024, DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.4c09001
Extreme weather and pollution have increased the salt content in some soil, making growing conditions harsh for salt-sensitive crops like rice. Now, researchers reporting in ACS Nano detail a possible solution that doesn’t require genetic modification to make rice plants thrive in these conditions. In lab experiments, they determined that coating rice seedlings with magnesium-doped carbon dots — derived from durian peels — increased the seedlings’ antioxidant activity and photosynthesis, reducing the stress caused by salty soil.
To increase stress resistance in plants, the current state-of-the-art solution is gene editing. However, gene editing technologies can be cost-prohibitive, and some people are concerned about the health effects and safety of genetically modified foods. One potential alternative to genetic modification is coating plant leaves with nanoscale carbon dots that counteract oxidative stress by mimicking the plant’s antioxidant enzymes. So, Longwei Jiang, Jianguo Zeng and colleagues designed a carbon dot using pulverized durian peel that could neutralize reactive oxygen species (ROS) and alleviate salt stress-induced damage in rice plants.
Durian peels are inedible and account for 70 to 85% of the fruit’s weight. The peel also contains a lot of carbon, making the discarded rind a good source for biomass-derived carbon dots. The researchers doped their durian-derived carbon dots with magnesium — an element essential for plant growth — and then sprayed them on rice seedlings planted in salt-free and salty soils.
The team found that seedlings treated with their dots contained lower levels of ROS and grew taller in salty soils than untreated seedlings. Furthermore, treated seedlings had activated plant defense and photosynthesis genes that weren’t activated in untreated seedlings. The researchers caution that more information is needed to better understand how exactly the dots are triggering these cellular and genetic changes; more information is also needed about the treated plants’ impact on the environment and the humans and animals that consume them. However, the study concludes that carbon dots represent a potential strategy for enhancing plant salt tolerance and provide valuable insights for their agriculture applications.
The authors acknowledge funding from the National Natural Science Foundation of China, Natural Science Foundation of Heilongjiang Province of China, China Postdoctoral Science Foundation and Anhui Agricultural University talent introduction project.
###
The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a nonprofit organization chartered by the U.S. Congress. ACS’ mission is to advance the broader chemistry enterprise and its practitioners for the benefit of Earth and all its people. The Society is a global leader in promoting excellence in science education and providing access to chemistry-related information and research through its multiple research solutions, peer-reviewed journals, scientific conferences, e-books and weekly news periodical Chemical & Engineering News. ACS journals are among the most cited, most trusted and most read within the scientific literature; however, ACS itself does not conduct chemical research. As a leader in scientific information solutions, its CAS division partners with global innovators to accelerate breakthroughs by curating, connecting and analyzing the world’s scientific knowledge. ACS’ main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio.
Registered journalists can subscribe to the ACS journalist news portal on EurekAlert! to access embargoed and public science press releases. For media inquiries, contact newsroom@acs.org.
Note: ACS does not conduct research but publishes and publicizes peer-reviewed scientific studies.
Journal
ACS Nano
Article Title
“Magnesium-Doped Carbon Quantum Dot Nanomaterials Alleviate Salt Stress in Rice by Scavenging Reactive Oxygen Species to Increase Photosynthesis”
No comments:
Post a Comment