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Polystyrene nanoplastics in soil impair drought priming-induced low temperature tolerance in wheat
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Researchers investigated how polystyrene nanoplastics in soil affect the cold stress tolerance of drought-primed wheat plants. The study found that nanoplastic contamination impaired the beneficial effects of drought priming on photosynthesis and carbohydrate metabolism, ultimately reducing grain yield, suggesting that nanoplastic pollution may undermine crop resilience strategies.
Drought priming is known to enhance plant low temperature tolerance, whereas polystyrene nanoplastic contamination exerts detrimental effects on plant growth. This study investigates the less-explored influence of nanoplastic contamination on cold stress tolerance in drought-primed plants. We compared the photosynthetic carbon assimilation, carbohydrate metabolism, reactive oxygen species metabolism, and grain yield between the non-primed and drought-primed wheat grown in both nanoplastic-contaminated and healthy soils. Our results reveal that the beneficial effects of drought priming on photosynthetic carbon assimilation and the efficiency of the "water-water" cycle were compromised in the presence of nanoplastics (nPS). Additionally, nPS exposure disturbed carbohydrate metabolism, which impeded source-to-sink transport of sugar and resulted in reduced grain yield in drought-primed plants under low temperature conditions. These findings unveil the suppression of nPS on drought-primed low-temperature tolerance (DPLT) in wheat plants, suggesting an intricate interplay between the induction of stress tolerance and responses to nPS contamination. The study raises awareness about a potential challenge for future crop production.
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Researchers simulated +4°C soil warming combined with polystyrene nanoplastic exposure in wheat seedlings and found the combination induced greater oxidative stress and reduced plant height, fresh weight, and net photosynthesis compared to either stressor alone, highlighting compounding risks from simultaneous nanoplastic pollution and climate warming on crop production.
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Barley plants irrigated with polystyrene nanoplastics accumulated the particles in cells and showed impaired cold tolerance during low temperature stress, with confocal imaging confirming that nanoplastics can cross the cell wall and accumulate in plant tissue.
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Researchers exposed wheat seeds and seedlings to polystyrene nanoplastics and found that while germination rates were unaffected, root growth increased significantly compared to controls. However, the nanoplastics were taken up by the roots and transported to the shoots, reducing micronutrient absorption and altering key metabolic pathways related to energy and amino acid production. The findings suggest that nanoplastics can fundamentally change how crop plants grow and process nutrients.
[Effects of Microplastics on the Growth, Physiology, and Biochemical Characteristics of Wheat (Triticum aestivum)].
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Wheat seedlings were grown in soils spiked with 100 nm and 5 μm polystyrene microplastics, with high concentrations (200 mg/L) significantly inhibiting root and stem elongation, reducing chlorophyll, and altering antioxidant enzyme activity, with smaller nanoplastics showing greater toxicity. The findings demonstrate that microplastic size influences phytotoxicity in a major agricultural crop.
Nanotoxicological effects and transcriptome mechanisms of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) under stress of polystyrene nanoplastics
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Researchers studied how polystyrene nanoplastics affect wheat plants at the molecular level using gene expression analysis. They found that nanoplastic exposure disrupted genes involved in photosynthesis, hormone signaling, and stress responses, ultimately reducing plant growth. The study provides new insights into how nanoplastic contamination in agricultural soils could harm crop development at a fundamental biological level.
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