Exploring sustainable management by using green nano-silver to combat three post-harvest pathogenic fungi in crops.

Global crop protection and food security have become critical issues to achieve the 'Zero Hunger' goal in recent years, as significant crop damage is primarily caused by biotic factors. Applying nanoparticles in agriculture could enhance crop yield. Nano-silver, or AgNPs, have colossal importance in many fields like biomedical, agriculture, and the environment due to their antimicrobial potential. In this context, nano-silver was fabricated by Citrus medica L. (Cm) fruit juice, detected visually and by UV-Vis spectrophotometric analysis. Further, AgNPs were characterized by advanced techniques. UV-Vis spectroscopic analysis revealed absorbance spectra at around 487 nm. The zeta potential measurement value was noted as -23.7 mV. Spectral analysis by FT-IR proved the capping of the acidic groups. In contrast, the XRD analysis showed the Miller indices like the face-centered cubic (fcc) crystalline structure. NTA revealed a mean size of 35 nm for nano-silver with a 2.4 × 108 particles mL-1 concentration. TEM analysis demonstrated spherical Cm-AgNPs with 20-30 nm sizes. The focus of this research was to evaluate the antifungal activity of biogenic AgNPs against post-harvest pathogenic fungi, including Aspergillus niger, A. flavus, and Alternaria alternata. The Cm-AgNPs showed significant antifungal activity in the order of A. niger > A. flavus > A. alternata. The biogenic Cm-AgNPs can be used for the inhibition of toxigenic fungi.

Application of X-ray based modern instrumental techniques to determine the heavy metals in soils, minerals and organic media.

To evaluate the environmental concerns associated with heavy metals (HMs) during their translocations in food chains, it is crucial to gather data on the types of HMs present in soils in order to ascertain their toxicity and potential to migrate. An overview of the findings from several physical techniques used to determine and identify the HMs, sediments, individual minerals, and organic components in contaminated agricultural and industrial soils, is provided in this review article. These studies cover a variety of X-ray-based analytical techniques, including most widely used ones like X-ray absorption near edge structure, extended X-ray absorption fine structure, X-ray diffraction, and less popular ones X-ray fluorescence, etc. When compared to techniques that rely on laboratory radiation sources, synchrotron radiation offers more precision and efficiency. These methods could pinpoint the primary mechanisms influencing the soil's ability to transport contaminants and track their subsequent migration up the food chain.

Cell free extract-mediated biogenic synthesis of ZnONPs and their application with kanamycin as a bactericidal combination.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a main public health issue and a challenge for the scientific community all over the globe. Hence, there is a burning need to build new bactericides that resist the AMR. The ZnONPs were produced by cell free extract of mint (Mentha piperita L.) leaves. Antibiotics that are ineffective against resistant bacteria like Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus were treated. The antibiotics were first screened, and then antibacterial activity was checked by disk diffusion, and MIC of Mp-ZnONPs individually and using Kanamycin (KAN) were determined against these pathogens by broth microdilution method. The synergism between Mp-ZnONPs and KAN was confirmed by checkerboard assay. The MIC showed robust antibacterial activity against the tested pathogens. The combination of KAN and Mp-ZnONPs reduces the MIC of KAN as it efficiently inhibits E. coli's growth, and KAN significantly enhances the antibacterial activity of Mp-ZnONPs. Taken together, Mp-ZnONPs have strong antimicrobial activity, and KAN significantly improves it against the tested pathogens, which would offer an effective, novel, and benign therapeutic methodology to regulate the incidence. The combination of Mp-ZnONPs and KAN would lead to the development of novel bactericides, that could be used in the formulation of pharmaceutical products.

Biogenic Synthesis of Fluorescent Carbon Dots (CDs) and Their Application in Bioimaging of Agricultural Crops.

Fluorescent nanoparticles have a transformative potential for advanced sensors and devices for point-of-need diagnostics and bioimaging, bypassing the technical burden of meeting the assay performance requirements. Carbon dots (CDs) are rapidly emerging carbon-based nanomaterials. Regardless of their fate, they will find increasing applications. In this study, a simple approach for synthesizing CDs from fruit peels was developed. The CDs were fabricated from Annona squamosa (L.) peels using a carbonization technique through microwave-assisted hydrothermal digestion at temperatures around 200 °C. Synthesized CDs were detected using a UV transilluminator for the preliminary confirmation of the presence of fluorescence. UV-Vis spectrophotometry (absorbance at 505 nm) analysis, zeta potential measurement (-20.8 mV), nanoparticles tracking analysis (NTA) (average size: 15.4 nm and mode size: 9.26 nm), photoluminescence, and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) analysis were used to identify the capping functional groups on the CDs. The total quantum yield exhibited was 8.93%, and the field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) showed the size range up to 40 nm. The germinating mung bean (Vigna radiata (L.)) seeds were incubated with biogenically synthesized CDs to check the absorption of CDs by them. The fluorescence was observed under a UV-transilluminator in the growing parts of seeds, indicating the absorption of CDs during the germination, development, and growth. These fluorescent CDs could be used as a bioimaging agent. This novel method of synthesizing CDs was found to be eco-friendly, rapid, and cost-effective.

Chitosan nanoparticles (ChNPs): A versatile growth promoter in modern agricultural production.

Agriculture is a backbone of global economy and most of the population relies on this sector for their livelihood. Chitosan as a biodegradable material thus can be explored for in various fields in its nano form to replace non-biodegradable and toxic compounds. The chitosan has appealing properties like biocompatibility, non-toxicity, biodegradability, and low allergenic, making it useful in several applications including in agriculture sector. Because of their unique properties, chitosan nanoparticles (ChNPs) are extensively applied as a bioagent in various biological and biomedical processes, including wastewater treatment, plant growth promoter, fungicidal agent, wound healing, and scaffold for tissue engineering. Furthermore, the biocompatibility of chitosan nanoparticles (ChNPs) is reported to have other biological properties such as anti-cancerous, antifungal, antioxidant activities, even induces an immune response in the plant, and helps manage biotic and abiotic stresses. Chitosan can also find its application in wastewater treatment, hydrating agents in cosmetics, the food industry, paper, and the textile industry as adhesive, drug-delivering agent in medical as well as for bioimaging. Since chitosan has low toxicity, the nano-formulation of chitosan can be used for the controlled release of fertilizers, pesticides, and plant growth promoters in agriculture fields. The ChNPs applications in precision farming being a novel approach in recent developments. Here we have comprehensively reviewed the major points in this review are; the synthesis of ChNPs by biological resources, their modification and formulation for increasing its applicability, their modified types, and the different agricultural applications of ChNPs.