Abstract

Cadmium (Cd) is an unessential and pervasive contaminant in agricultural soil, eventually affecting the food and instigating health issues. The implication of nanocomposites in agriculture attained significant attention to drive food security. Nanocomposites possess exceptional characteristics to stun the challenges of chemical fertilizers that can enhance plant yield and better nutrient bioavailability. Similarly, biochar has the ability to immobilize Cd in soil by reducing mobility and bioavailability. Rice husk biochar is produced at high temperature pyrolysis under anoxic conditions and a stable carbon-rich material is formed. To strive against this issue, rice plants were subjected to Cd (15, 20 mg kg− 1) stress and treated with alone/combined Ca + Mg (25 mg L− 1) nanocomposite and rice husk biochar. In our study, growth and yield traits showed the nurturing influence of Ca + Mg nanocomposite and biochar to improve rice defence mechanism by reducing Cd stress. Growth parameters root length 28%, shoot length 34%, root fresh weight 19%, shoot fresh weight 16%, root dry weight 9%, shoot dry weight 8%, number of tillers 32%, number of grains 20%, and spike length 17% were improved with combined application of Ca + Mg and biochar, with Cd (20 mg kg− 1), rivalled to alone biochar. Combined Ca + Mg and biochar application increased the SPAD 23%, total chlorophyll 26%, a 19%, b 18%, and carotenoids 15%, with Cd (20 mg kg− 1), rivalled to alone biochar. MDA 15%, H2O2 13%, and EL 10% were significantly regulated in shoots with combined Ca + Mg and biochar application with Cd (20 mg kg− 1) compared to alone biochar. POD 22%, SOD 17%, APX 18%, and CAT 9% were increased in shoots with combined Ca + Mg and biochar application with Cd (20 mg kg− 1) compared to alone biochar. Cd uptake in roots 13%, shoots 14%, and grains 21% were minimized under Cd (20 mg kg− 1) with combined Ca + Mg and B. pumilus application, compared to alone biochar. Subsequently, combined Ca + Mg and biochar application is a sustainable solution to boost crop production under Cd stress.

Details

Title
Novel nanocomposite and biochar insights to boost rice growth and alleviation of Cd toxicity
Author
Ali, Muhammad Azhar 1 ; Nafees, Muhammad 2 ; Alomrani, Sarah Owdah 3 ; Li, Yuanyuan 1 ; Wang, Qian 1 ; Alshehri, Mohammed Ali 4 ; Al-Ghanim, Khalid A. 5 ; Ali, Shafaqat 6 ; Li, Fengmin 1 

 Sanya Oceanographic Institute, Ocean University of China, Institute of Coastal Environmental Pollution Control, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Marine Environment and Ecology, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Qingdao, China (GRID:grid.4422.0) (ISNI:0000 0001 2152 3263) 
 Nanjing University, State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing, China (GRID:grid.41156.37) (ISNI:0000 0001 2314 964X) 
 Najran University, Department of Biology, College of Science and Arts, Najran, Saudi Arabia (GRID:grid.440757.5) (ISNI:0000 0004 0411 0012) 
 University of Tabuk, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia (GRID:grid.440760.1) (ISNI:0000 0004 0419 5685) 
 King Saud University, Department of Zoology, College of Science, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (GRID:grid.56302.32) (ISNI:0000 0004 1773 5396) 
 Government College University, Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Faisalabad, Pakistan (GRID:grid.411786.d) (ISNI:0000 0004 0637 891X); China Medical University, Department of Biological Sciences and Technology, Taichung, Taiwan, People’s Republic of China (GRID:grid.254145.3) (ISNI:0000 0001 0083 6092) 
Pages
23158
Publication year
2024
Publication date
2024
Publisher
Nature Publishing Group
e-ISSN
20452322
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
3112977076
Copyright
© The Author(s) 2024. This work is published under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.