Amino Acid-Based Intelligent Nanocarrier Enhances the Targeted Delivery of Fungicides for Banana Wilt Disease Control

Banana wilt disease jeopardizes global banana production, exacerbated by the overuse of fungicides. The large-scale application of fungicides in soil provides certain preventive effects, but achieving precise and target control at the infection site during disease outbreaks remains challenging. To address these issues, an innovative amino acid-based nano-delivery system is constructed to deliver the non-systemic fungicide fludioxonil (Flu) to banana rhizomes. This system utilizes tryptophan (Trp), which can be mediated by amino acid transporters, and polysuccinimide (PSI) to load Flu through multiple mechanisms, enabling precise targeted delivery. By employing hydrogen bonding and π-π stacking interactions, the Flu-PSI-Trp₁₇ achieves a loading efficiency of 53.74%, which enhances leaf deposition and causes severe damage to the mycelial structure of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense Tropical Race 4 (Foc TR4). Notably, targeted transport allows nanoparticles to accumulate in banana rhizomes, significantly mitigates disease-induced metabolic defects and improves the protective efficacy against Fusarium wilt in potted experiments by approximately 5-fold. Furthermore, the system demonstrates excellent biocompatibility and low phytotoxicity. Overall, this work provides a feasible approach for constructing targeted nano-delivery systems for agrochemicals, highlights the importance of developing amino acid-based nanocarriers with targeting capability, and offers a promising solution for advancing precise agriculture.