Graphene Oxide-Assisted Promotion of Plant Growth and Stability.

Sunho Park,Kyoung Soon Choi,Yonghyun Gwon,Sujin Kim,Jangho Kim

doi:10.3390/nano10040758

Sunho Park, Kyoung Soon Choi + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/nano10040758

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Abstract

The control and promotion of plant and crop growth are important challenges globally. In this study, we have developed a nanomaterial-assisted bionic strategy for accelerating plant growth. Although nanomaterials have been shown to be toxic to plants, we demonstrate herein that graphene oxide can be used as a regulator tool for enhancing plant growth and stability. Graphene oxide was added to the growth medium of Arabidopsis thaliana L. as well as injected into the stem of the watermelon plant. We showed that with an appropriate amount provided, graphene oxide had a positive effect on plant growth in terms of increasing the length of roots, the area of leaves, the number of leaves, and the formation of flower buds. In addition, graphene oxide affected the watermelon ripeness, increasing the perimeter and sugar content of the fruit. We believe that graphene oxide may be used as a strategy for enabling the acceleration of both plant growth and the fruit ripening process.

Highlights

Given the rapid population growth and climate change worldwide, the needs for efficient food cultivation and food security have become ever more important
We demonstrated that small concentrations of graphene oxide (GO) promoted good plant growth and stability, suggesting that this nanomaterial can render positive effects on the growth and quality of plants and crops
Our findings provide an insight into the rational design of an efficient nanomaterial-assisted cultivation system that could be used for the acceleration of both plant growth and the fruit ripening process

Summary

Introduction

Given the rapid population growth and climate change worldwide, the needs for efficient food cultivation and food security have become ever more important. Those based on chemical materials have been mainly used in both crop cultivation and plant biology [4,5]. Chemical materials can provide nutrients to crops directly, and they can optimize the efficiency of the soil condition by increasing its water retention or modifying its aeration [6]. Chemical materials can be mass produced, making their increasingly essential use in crop cultivation economically viable. The excessive use of chemical materials has promoted the emergence of genetic resistance in plants and crops, and the accumulation of these chemicals in soil and water can lead to serious environmental pollution. The accumulation of these chemical materials in the crops themselves can indirectly cause negative side effects to humans and animals [7]

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