1 research outputs found
Impact of Carbon Nanotube Exposure to Seeds of Valuable Crops
Multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs)
affected seed germination, growth, and the development of three important
crops (barley, soybean, corn). Early seed germination and activation
of growth in exposed seedlings was observed when MWCNTs were added
to sterile agar medium. Similarly, seed germination was activated
for all tested crop species when MWCNTs were deposited on seed surfaces.
The ability of MWCNTs to penetrate the seed coats of corn, barley,
and soybean was proven by detection of nanotube agglomerates inside
MWCNT-exposed seeds using Raman spectroscopy and transmission electron
microscopy (TEM). Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction
(RT-PCR) analysis revealed that the expression of genes encoding several
types of water channel proteins was increased in soybean, corn, and
barley seeds coated with MWCNTs compared with uncoated control seeds.
Our results indicate that the positive effect of MWCNTs on the germination
and growth of seedlings is reproducible between crop species and can
be observed for different methods of delivering carbon nanotubes.
Such studies could prove the significant potential of carbon nanotubes
as regulators of germination and plant growth