Influence of SiO2, Al2O3 and TiO2 nanoparticles on okra seed germination under PEG-6000 simulated water deficit stress

Abstract: A comparative study for evaluating the influence of metal oxide nanoparticles (MONPs) (Al2O3, TiO2, and SiO2) on seed germination and seedling growth in okra was implemented under water deficit stress stimulated by PEG-6000. The results revealed that additive of SiO2 nanoparticles (SNPs) and Al2O3 (ANPs) have significant positive effect on seeds germination, while a reduction of that were observed by using TiO2 nanoparticles (TNPs) at 50 mg.L-1 concentration under 5% PEG-6000 stimulated drought stress as compared to that without MONPs. Further, relative to non-MONPs treatment, all the tested MONPs dramatically enhanced the drought stress tolerance in okra seedlings due to the improvement of morphological growth despite a few traits were inhibited under certain water deficiency to some degree. Improvement of drought resistance induced by TNPs and ANPs were found to be higher than that by SNPs. Our finding provides a promising approach to cope with water scarcity, as application of metal oxide nanoparticles to be a potential option to protect okra plants against drought stress.