Regulation of oxidative stress and mineral nutrient status by selenium in arsenic treated crop plant Oryza sativa.

The present study was conducted to examine the impact of selenium (Se) on mineral nutrient status and oxidative stress in crop plant Oryza sativa treated with arsenic (As). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with Energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS) study revealed the morphological deformities in leaf veins along with granular deposition on the leaf surface. The EDS analysis exhibited loss of elements (S, Si, Cl, K, Ca, Fe and Cu) in As(III) treatment in rice roots as compared to untreated root. In the case of As(III) treated shoot, changes in elements content in term of percent atomic weight was K (1.17-0.90%), Cl (1.04-24.75%), Na (0.65-3.52%) and S (0.49-2.52%) when compared with untreated shoot. The result of EDS analysis showed that As limits the concentration of important mineral elements present in the rice root and shoot. Rice plant treated with Se (10µM) and sub lethal dose of As(III) (60µM) showed better growth responses in term of root, shoot length (11.4% and 10.71%, respectively), biomass (11.7%), reduced malonyldialdehyde content (35.14%) and stimulated antioxidant level indicating better As tolerance potential against As. Further, a selenium dependent significant reduction in As accumulation was also observed in root (14.24%) and shoot (23.78%) of rice plant when compared with plant treated with As alone. This study highlights the potential of Se to ameliorate the ecotoxicological risks associated with the As buildup in agricultural land.

Quercetin attenuates lambda cyhalothrin-induced reproductive toxicity in male rats.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the possible protective effects of Quercetin (Qe) against oxidative stress induced by λ cyhalothrin (LTC) in reproductive system. Thirty-two male rats were divided into four groups. First group was allocated as the control group. Second group was given a Qe alone while the third group received a LTC alone. Animals in the fourth group were given a Qe with LTC. Caudae epididymis was removed for sperm analysis. Lipid peroxidation (LPO), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), glutathione-S-transferase (GST), and reduced glutathione (GSH) were determined in the testis. Additionally, the different histopathologic changes were observed in the testis of animals. LTC exposure significantly increased the abnormal morphology and LPO. On the contrary, sperm motility, viability and count, levels of GSH, and activities of SOD, CAT, GPx, and GST were significantly decreased compared to controls. Qe with LTC offset the decrease in functional sperm parameters, antioxidants enzymatic activities, and nonenzymatic antioxidant levels when compared with LTC-treated rats. Furthermore, LTC showed irregular seminiferous tubules containing only Sertoli cells and Qe with LTC caused regular seminiferous tubules showing spermatogenesis at level of spermatocytes. We conclude that LTC-induced oxidative stress and functional sperm parameters in male rats, and dietary of Qe attenuates the reproductive toxicity of LTC to restore the antioxidant system and sperm parameters in male rats.

Combined Inhibitory Effect of Canada Goldenrod Invasion and Soil Microplastics on Rice Growth.

Alien plant invasion and residual soil microplastics (MPs) are growing threats to agricultural crop production. This study determined the adverse effects of Canadian goldenrod (Solidago canadensis L.) invasion and residual soil MPs on rice growth and development. The biomass, phenological indices, photosynthetic parameters, and antioxidant enzyme activities of rice were measured on the 50th and 80th day of post-plantation. Biomass and phenotypic results indicated the more harmful effects of the combination of S. canadensis invasion and residual soil MPs compared to S. canadensis invasion or residual soil MPs effects alone. Moreover, the interaction effect of S. canadensis invasion and residual soil MPs markedly reduced the ascorbate peroxidase and catalase belowground, while they increased in the aboveground parts of the rice. However, the S. canadensis invasion and residual soil MPs interactive treatments lowered the superoxide dismutase concentrations in the belowground parts of the rice plants while elevating the peroxidase and reactive oxygen species concentrations in both the belowground and aboveground parts compared to the other treatments. Among all treatments, S. canadensis invasion alone had the most negligible negative impact on rice biomass and growth indices. Our study suggests that soil MPs could negatively affect crop production with invasive alien plants, and the combined effects were more harmful than either of the single factors. Our findings will lay the groundwork for analyzing the impacts of invasive alien plants on rice crops.

Iron oxide nanoparticles ameliorated the cadmium and salinity stresses in wheat plants, facilitating photosynthetic pigments and restricting cadmium uptake.

Cadmium and salinity are the major threats to environmental resources and agricultural practice worldwide. The present work aims green synthesis, characterization, and application of iron oxide nanoparticles for co-alleviation of Cd and salt stresses in wheat plants. The iron oxide NPs were synthesized from a native bacterial strain, Pantoea ananatis strain RNT4, yielding a spherical FeO-NPs with a size ranging from 19 to 40 nm evidenced by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images. Results showed that application of 100 mg kg-1 of the bioengineered FeO-NPs in an original saline soil stimulated wheat plant growth, gaining 36.7% of additional length as compared with the control scenarios, via alleviating the detrimental effects of abiotic stresses and thereby reprogramming the morpho-physiological state of wheat plants. In addition, the presence of FeO-NPs in soil significantly increased the nutrient concentrations of N, P and K+, while reducing the Na+ and Cl- components in the wheat grain. Interestingly, application of the FeO-NPs in Cd-polluted soils eventually reduced wheat plant uptake of Cd by 72.5%, probably due to the adsorption of Cd onto the large surface of NPs and thereby, constraining Cd bioavailability to the plants. It provides the first evidence that a FeO-NPs-based treatment could be a candidate agricultural strategy for mitigating the Cd and salt stresses in Cd-polluted saline soils for safe agriculture practice.