Effect of Different Nanoparticles on Seed Germination and Seedling Growth in Rice

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the phytotoxicity of Fe 2 O 3 nanocubes, Fe 2 O 3 short nanorods, Fe 2 O 3 long nanorods, TiO 2 NPs; and MWCNTs to rice (Oryza sativa L.) seedlings during germination, including rice germination ratio, root length, shoot length and fresh weight. Our investigation found that all nanoparticles inhibited the germination of rice seeds. Fe 2 O 3 nanocubes, Fe 2 O 3 short nanorods, Fe 2 O 3 long nanorods and TiO 2 NPs all significantly promoted the root length, and stimulated shoots growth at most concentrations, but had no obvious effect on fresh weight.. Our study showed a comprehensive understanding of nanoparticles toxicity during plants germination. To our best knowledge, it was the first time to investigate the influence of Fe 2 O 3 nanomaterials morphologies on plants germination.