Zinc and copper oxide nanoparticles’ combined impact with HPS and LED lighting on enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants of ice plant (Mesembryanthemum crystallinum)
Various metallic nanoparticles (NPs) are increasingly incorporated into agricultural products.
However, there are still considerable gaps in knowledge of the plant uptake capacity, permissible limit, and ecotoxicity of different NPs.
Understanding the interactions between NPs and plants is crucial in the comprehension of the impact of nanotechnology on agriculture, with a focus on plant toxicity concerns and risks to human health.
Foliar spray of NPs is increasingly employed in agriculture, but the data regarding foliar uptake of NPs, associated biophysiochemical changes inside plants, and possible health hazards are limited.
Zinc (Zn) and copper (Cu) belong to the micronutrients with poor bioavailability, though this element is essential for the vital functions of plants.
This study aimed to evaluate the effect of Cu and Zn oxides NPs sprayed onto ice plant (Mesembryanthemum crystallinum) leaves grown in hydroponic Ebb systems in controlled environment chambers (photoperiod of 18 h, day/night temperature 25/21±2°C, and 60±5% relative air humidity) under two different lighting: the combination of white 65%, blue 5%, red 30% light emitting diodes (LEDs) and high-pressure sodium (HPS) light with 250 µmol m‑2 s‑1 intensity.
The influence was determined on the enzymatic (GR, APX, CAT, SOD, MDHAR, DHAR) and non-enzymatic (TPC, DPPH, ABTS, FRAP) antioxidants.
The results showed that the ice plant’s antioxidant activity was dependent on lighting.
For instance, LEDs increased DPPH and ABTS scavenging activity by 177 and 72%, FRAP antioxidant power was improved by 16%, and TPC increased by 44%. In addition, the same tendency was observed in enzymatic antioxidant activity.
NPs also influence plants’ antioxidant activity.
The effect of NPs on plant antioxidant systems did not differ under HPS illumination.
However, significant activations of the antioxidant system were found with LED lighting.
The use of CuO NPs significantly increased Gr, MDHAR, DHAR, and CAT activity by 22, 35, 47, 17, and 15%. In conclusion, it can be stated that lighting has a significant influence not only on the antioxidant activity of the ice plant but also on the effect of nanoparticles in plants.
Sutulienė, R., Brazaitytė, A., Tučkutė, S., Urbutis, M. and Duchovskis, P. (2025). Zinc and copper oxide nanoparticles’ combined impact with HPS and LED lighting on enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants of ice plant (Mesembryanthemum crystallinum). Acta Hortic. 1416, 107-112
DOI: 10.17660/ActaHortic.2025.1416.14
https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2025.1416.14
DOI: 10.17660/ActaHortic.2025.1416.14
https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2025.1416.14
ice plant, nanoparticles, copper oxide, antioxidants, zinc oxide
English
1416_14
107-112