Find in Library

The beneficial application of silver nanoparticles and biostimulants to increase crop yield and quality is a long-term strategy to achieve desired agricultural productions that are resilient to various biotic and abiotic challenges. This project aimed to evaluate the individual effects of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs), <i>Ascophyllum nodosum</i> (SEW), and <i>Spirulina platensis</i> (SP) on the growth and physiological responses of <i>Santolina chamaecyparissus</i>. <i>S. chamaecyparissus</i> plants were exposed to AgNPs (20, 40, and 60 mg L⁻¹), SWE (0.5% and 1%), and SP (1%, 2%, and 3%). The finding indicates that the light-harvesting efficiency and plant photochemical capacity are not affected by most treatments except for 60 mg L⁻¹ AgNPs. Furthermore, the pattern of H₂O₂ levels in leaves was significantly higher after AgNP, SP, and SEW treatments. In parallel, total phenolic production was at least accompanied by a burst in H₂O₂ levels. However, higher antioxidant activity compared to the control, is shown by the higher free-DPPH-radical inhibition that goes completely smoothly with lower H₂O₂ levels. Thus, the results of the present study showed that biostimulants overall improved the antioxidant activity of <i>S. chamaecyparissus</i> and induced variable detectable amounts of phenolic compounds in response to the concentrations of each biostimulant.