Exploring omics solutions to reduce micro/nanoplastic toxicity in plants: A comprehensive overview

The proliferation of plastic waste, particularly in the form of microplastics (MPs) and nanoplastics (NPs), has emerged as a significant environmental challenge with profound implications for agricultural ecosystems. These pervasive pollutants accumulate in soil, altering its physicochemical properties and disrupting microbial communities. MPs/NPs can infiltrate plant systems, leading to oxidative stress and cytotoxic effects, which in turn compromise essential physiological functions such as water uptake, nutrient absorption, and photosynthesis. This situation threatens crop yield and health, while also posing risks to human health and food security through potential accumulation in the food chain. Despite increasing awareness of this issue, substantial gaps still remain in our understanding of the physiological and molecular mechanisms that govern plant responses to MP/NP stress. This review employs integrative omics techniques including genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and epigenomics to elucidate these responses. High-throughput methodologies have revealed significant genetic and metabolic alterations that enable plants to mitigate the toxicity associated with MPs/NPs. The findings indicate a reconfiguration of metabolic pathways aimed at maintaining cellular homeostasis, activation of antioxidant mechanisms, and modulation of gene expression related to stress responses. Additionally, epigenetic modifications suggest that plants adapt to prolonged plastics exposure, highlighting unexplored avenues for targeted research. By integrating various omics approaches, a comprehensive understanding of molecular interactions and their effects on plant systems can be achieved. This review underscores potential targets for biotechnological and agronomic interventions aimed at enhancing plant resilience by identifying key stress-responsive genes, proteins, and metabolites. Ultimately, this work addresses critical knowledge gaps and highlights the importance of multi-omics strategies in developing sustainable solutions to mitigate the adverse effects of MP/NP pollution in agriculture, thereby ensuring the integrity of food systems and ecosystems.