Toxicity and Uptake of CuO Nanoparticles: Evaluation of an Emerging Nanofertilizer on Wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) Plant

Amany S. Ibrahim, Gomaa A. M. Ali, Amro Hassanein, Ahmed M. Attia and Ezzat R. Marzouk
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Amany S. Ibrahim: Department of Environmental Studies, Institute of Graduate Studies and Research, Alexandria University, Alexandria 21526, Egypt
Gomaa A. M. Ali: Chemistry Department, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, Assiut 71524, Egypt
Amro Hassanein: Department of Environmental Science and Technology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
Ahmed M. Attia: Department of Environmental Studies, Institute of Graduate Studies and Research, Alexandria University, Alexandria 21526, Egypt
Ezzat R. Marzouk: Department of Soils and Water, Faculty of Environmental Agricultural Sciences, Arish University, El-Arish 45516, Egypt

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 9, 1-20

Abstract: Wet chemistry was used to produce copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs). The results indicated that most nanoparticles were bacillus-shaped and relatively uniform in size (less than 30 nm). The effect of synthesized CuO NPs on wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) germination and growth parameters was studied and compared to bulk Cu. The results showed that no significant difference was obtained in germination rate among all treatments. Bulk Cu additions significantly affect the mean germination rate and mean germination time. On the contrary, germinability was significantly affected by CuO NPs additions. Seed vigor index was calculated to demonstrate the superior treatment in wheat germination parameters, and the results confirmed that 0.1 mg L −1 of CuO NPs could be successfully used to improve wheat seed germination. Moreover, the general average Cu concentrations in the plant tissue were 139 and 103 mg kg −1 dry weight for bulk and CuO NPs, respectively, indicating the dissolution behavior of CuO NPs. The addition of CuO NPs (0.1 mg L −1 ) promotes chlorophyll formation equal to 0.5 mg L −1 of the bulk Cu addition. This means using nanoparticles as fertilizer could reduce 80% of traditional fertilizers. Nonetheless, Cu additions in both forms (NPs and bulk) reduce root growth substantially compared to control. The effective toxic dose (EC 50 ) for bulk Cu and CuO NPs was 0.37 mg L −1 and 0.94 mg L −1 , respectively. The results indicated that approximately 2.5 times CuO NPs concentration is equal to the toxicity dose of bulk Cu due to lowered CuO NPs dissolution. Our study showed that Cu phytotoxicity is a non-nanosized effect and showed that plant-induced changes under environmentally real conditions should be considered when measuring the dissolution of CuO NPs near wheat plant roots. This study implies that using nano-CuO as a micronutrient amendment has a potential benefit rather than the soluble Cu salt for plant growth.

Keywords: copper oxide nanoparticles; dissolution; wheat seedling; germination characteristics; toxicity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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