Soil-applied polystyrene nanoplastics (PSNPs) remain cortically confined but trigger systemic oxidative and metabolic disruption in Zea mays L. seedlings
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View abstract on PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.Soil-applied nanoplastics (NPs) significantly inhibit maize growth and disrupt its redox balance, even without translocation into the plant vascular system. These findings highlight the impact of NPs on crop health and soil sustainability.
Area Of Science
- Environmental Science
- Plant Biology
- Toxicology
Background
- Nanoplastics (NPs) are increasingly recognized as soil contaminants.
- Understanding the phytotoxic effects of NPs under realistic conditions is crucial.
Purpose Of The Study
- To evaluate the impact of soil-applied polystyrene nanoplastics (PSNPs) on maize (Zea mays L.) growth and physiology.
- To investigate the dose-dependent responses and metabolic alterations induced by PSNPs.
Main Methods
- Maize was exposed to PSNPs at concentrations ranging from 0.1 to 50 mg kg<sup>-1</sup>.
- Growth parameters, chlorophyll content, protein and carbohydrate levels, proline, antioxidant enzymes, and glutathione redox status were analyzed.
- Confocal imaging was used to track PSNP localization.
- Untargeted liquid chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) metabolomics was performed on shoot tissues.
Main Results
- PSNP exposure inhibited maize growth, reduced biomass and chlorophyll, and depleted soluble proteins and carbohydrates.
- Proline levels and antioxidant enzymes (CAT, SOD, POD) increased, while the GSH:GSSG ratio declined, indicating oxidative stress.
- PSNP fluorescence was confined to root epidermal and cortical tissues, with no significant vascular translocation.
- Metabolomics revealed downregulation of amino acid and chlorophyll pathways, with activation of phenylpropanoid and flavonoid pathways.
Conclusions
- Soil-applied PSNPs impair maize growth and redox homeostasis through oxidative stress and signaling pathways, primarily via root-localized effects.
- These findings provide ecologically relevant evidence of PSNP phytotoxicity in a major food crop.
- The study emphasizes the need for nanoplastic monitoring in soil health and agricultural sustainability assessments.
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