Escolar Documentos
Profissional Documentos
Cultura Documentos
2: 161-165, 2009
Abstract — Nanomaterials and nanotechnology have been widely applied in the world in this last decade. Nanote-
chnology provides the tool and the technological platforms for the study and transformation of biological systems.
Few studies have focused on the effects and mechanisms of nanomaterials on plants. The results of these studies
have been reported with the aim to provide further insight into connections between plants and nanomaterials.
Key words: Angiosperms, nanoparticles, nanotechnology.
diate environments, are expected to be affected particles greatly adhered onto the root surface and
as a result to their exposition to NSPs. In the individual nanoparticles were observed present in
review of Navarro et al. (2008) three topics are apoplast and protoplast of the root endodermis
underlined, 1: sources, transformation and fate and stele. Translocation factor of Zn from root to
of nanoparticles; 2: biotransformation that engi- shoot remained very low under ZnO nanoparti-
neered nanoparticles can experience in contact cles treatments. The authors evidenced that the
with algae, fungi and plants and then the enhance phytotoxicity of ZnO nanoparticles was not di-
and fate of these organisms; 3: the mechanism of rectly correlated with their limited dissolution in
engineered nanoparticles toxicity and their effect the bulk nutrient solution or rizosphere.
on organism and how these toxic effects might be Limited reports underline positive or no ad-
transferred through food chains, thus affecting verse effects of NSPs on higher plants. Hong et
communities and whole ecosystems. al. (2005a, b) analysed the effects of nano-Ti02
Even as there has been an increasing amount (rutile) on the photochemical reaction of chloro-
of research on the toxicity of NSPs to animal king- plasts of Spinacia oleracea as a theoretical basis and
dom and bacteria, limited studies are available in technical approach for the agricultural application
higher plants. of NSPs. The obtained results evidenced that the
nano TiO2 treatments induced an increase of the
Hill reaction and of the activity of chloroplasts,
Plant-Nanoparticles which accelerated FeCy reduction and oxygen
Interactions: The State Of Art evolution. Moreover non cyclic photophosphor-
ylation activity was higher that cyclic photophos-
Higher plants strongly interact with their at- phorylation activity. The explanation of these ef-
mospheric and terrestrial environments and are fects, on the opinion of the authors, could be that
expected to be affected as a results of their expo- the nano-TiO2 might enter the chloroplast and its
sure to NSPs. oxidation-reduction reactions might accelerate
Studies on the toxicity of nanomaterials are still electron transport and oxygen evolution. Zhang
emerging and basically evidence several negative et al. (2005) analysed the effects of nano-TiO2 and
effects on growth and development of plantlets. non nano-TiO2 on the germination and growth of
These results are based on tests suggested and en- naturally aged seeds of Spinacia oleracea by meas-
coded by USEPA (1996), that consider studies on uring the germination rate and the germination
seed germination, root elongation, often accom- and vigor indexes. An increase of these indexes
panied by other evaluations on biomass changes was observed at 0.25-4‰ nano-TiO2 treatments.
and anatomical-histological studies, useful to evi- During the growth stage the plant dry weight was
dence in situ symptoms of possible toxicity. increased as was the chlorophyll formation, the
Lin and Xing (2007) analysed phytotoxicity of ribulose bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase ac-
five types of multiwalled nanoparticles at the level tivity and the photosynthetic rate. These results
of seed germination and root growth in six higher evidenced that the physiological effects were re-
plant species (Raphanus sativus, Brassica napus, lated to the nanometer-size particles. The authors
Lolium multiflorum, Lactuca sativa, Zea mays and reported also that the effects of non nano-TiO2
Cucumis sativus). Seed germination was not affect- particles were not significant.
ed except for the inhibition of nanoscale zinc on Racuciu and Creanga (2007) analysed the
Lolium multiflorum and nanoscale zinc oxide on influence of magnetic nanoparticles coated with
Zea mays. Inhibition of root growth varied greatly tetramethylammonium hydroxide on the growth
among nanoparticles and plants and it is partially of Zea mays plant in early ontogenetic stages. The
correlated to nanoparticles concentration. The authors affirmed that water based ferrofluid ad-
authors concluded that the inhibition occurred dition in culture medium represents a source of
during the seed incubation process rather than iron. The ironbased nanoparticles may have not
seed soaking stage. only a chemical but also a magnetic influence on
Later, the same researchers team (Lin and the enzymatic structures implied in the different
Xing 2008) analysed the cell internalization and stages of photosynthesis. Small concentrations of
the upward translocation of ZnO nanoparticles aqueous ferrofluid solution added in culture me-
by Lolium perenne. In the presence of ZnO nano- dium had a stimulating effect on the growth of
particles ryegrass biomass significantly reduced, the plantlets while the enhanced concentration of
root tip shrank and root epidermal and cortical aqueous ferrofluid solution induced an inhibitory
highly vacuolated or collapsed cells. ZnO nano- effect.
nanoparticles and plants 163
Gao et al. (2006) evidenced, in nano anatase magnetite nanoparticles can absorb, move and ac-
TiO2 treated Spinacia oleracea, that Rubisco car- cumulate the particles in the plant tissues, on the
boxylase activity was 2.67 times that of control contrary Phaseolus limensis is not able to absorb
Rubisco. Since in the photosynthesis the mo- and move particles. Therefore different plants
lecular mechanism of carbon reaction promoted have different response to the same nanoparti-
by nano-anatase TiO2 was still not clearly under- cles.
stood, Xuming et al. (2008), by reverse transcrip- Lee et al. (2008)
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analysed toxicity and bioavail-
tion PCR and Northen blotting experiments, evi- ability of copper nanoparticles to the plants Pha-
denced that Rubisco small subunits and Rubisco seolus radiatus and Triticum aestivum employing
large subunit messenger RNAs were promoted plant agar test as growth substrate for homogene-
in the nano-treated plants. Accordingly, the pro- ous exposure of nanoparticles. Plant agar, which
tein expression of Rubisco from the nano-anatase is soft gel, allows dispersion of NSPs, hardly water
treated spinach was increased by 40% compared soluble, avoiding their precipitation. The growth
with the control. rates of both plants were inhibited and as result
Since the manufacture of nanosized materials of exposure to nanoparticles and the seedling
may result in the discharge of amount of these ma- lengths of tested species were negatively related to
terials into the environments, Doshi et al. (2008) the exposure concentration of nanoparticles. Bio-
analysed the transport of two types of nanosized accumulation is concentration dependent and the
alumin particles through sand column with asso- contents of NSPs in plant tissues increased with
ciated environmental impacts on soil systems. The increasing NSPs concentration in growth media.
presence of nano alumin particles did not have a Triticum aestivum showed a greater accumulation
negative effect on the growth of Phaseolus vulgaris of Cu NSPs in its roots due to root morphology.
and Lolium perenne in the tested concentration Bioavailability was estimated by calculating the
range. bioaccumulation factor defined as Cu NSPs con-
In order to understand the possible benefits of centration in the plants divided by the Cu NSPs
applying nanotechnology to agriculture, the first concentration in the growth media.
step should be to analyze penetration and trans- The main damage to the ecosystem due to par-
port of nanoparticles in plants. ticulate deposition is related to the competition
It is ascertained that nanoparticles tagged to pattern alteration among the species that can re-
agrochemicals or to other substances could re- sult in a drastic effect in plant biodiversity: more
duce the injury to plant tissues and the amount of sensitive species may be eliminated and growth,
chemicals released into the environment; a certain flowering and fructification of other species may
contact is however unavoidable, due to the strong be favoured.
interaction of plants with soil growth substrates. Atmospheric particulate matter deposition on
Gonzalez-Melendi et al. (2008) illustrated the the leaves leads to remarkable alteration in the
application of microscopy tools and techniques at transpiration rates, thermal balance and photo-
different level of resolution to visualize and track synthesis. Da silva et al. (2006) showed that na-
the transport and deposition of nanoparticles in- noparticles may enter leaf surface. The structural
side the plants. The author used carbon-coated features of leaf of Byrsonima sericea and Psidium
magnetic nanoparticles (carbon encapsulation guineense such peltate trichomes and hypodermis
provides biocompatibility and a large adsorption probably formed a barrier reducing the penetra-
surface) in living plant as Cucurbita pepo and the tion of metal ions into the mesophyll as observed
results showed the presence of nanoparticles both by the lower iron leaf content and iron accumula-
in the extracellular space and within some cells. tion in trichomes.
Battke et al. (2008) analysed the uptake of Since penetration rates of foliar applied polar
Palladium (Pd) by Hordeum vulgare and the be- solutes are highly variable and the mechanism is
haviour of Pd nanoparticles in nutrient solutions not yet fully understood, Eichert et al (2008) in-
used to grow plants. Smaller and larger Pd parti- vestigated in Allium porrum and Vicia faba size
cles were comparatively assessed and the results exclusion limits and lateral heterogeneity of the
showed that Pd uptake, via the roots, depends on stomatal foliar uptake pathway for aqueous solutes
its particle diameter. Smaller Pd particles cause and water-suspended nanoparticles. The results
stress effects in leaves at low concentration in nu- suggested that the stomatal pathway differ funda-
trient solution. mentally from the cuticolar foliar uptake pathway.
Zhu et al. (2008) showed that Cucurbita maxi- Even if application of nanotechnology to biol-
ma growing in an aqueous medium containing ogy have been mainly focused on animal science
164 ruffini castiglione and cremonini
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