Physiological impacts of zero valent iron, Fe3O4 and Fe2O3 nanoparticles in rice plants and their potential as Fe fertilizers

Fe-based nanoparticles (Fe-based NPs) have great potential as a substitute for traditional Fe-fertilizer; however, their environmental risk and impact on plant growth are not fully understood. In this study, we compared the physiological impacts of three different Fe-based NP formulations: zero-valent iron (ZVI), Fe₃O₄ and Fe₂O₃ NPs, on hydroponic rice after root exposure for 2 weeks. Fe-normal (Fe(+)) and Fe-deficiency (Fe(−)) conditions were compared. Results showed that low dose (50 mg L⁻¹) of ZVI and Fe₃O₄ NPs improved the rice growth under Fe(−) condition, while Fe₂O₃ NPs did not improve plant growth and caused phytotoxicity at high concentration (500 mg L⁻¹). Under Fe(+) conditions, none of the Fe-based NPs exhibited positive effects on the rice plants with plant growth actually being inhibited at 500 mg L⁻¹ evidenced by reduced root volume and leaf biomass and enhanced oxidative stress in plant. Under Fe(−) condition, low dose (50 mg L⁻¹) of ZVI NPs and Fe₃O₄ NPs increased the chlorophyll content by 30.7% and 26.9%, respectively. They also alleviated plant stress demonstrated by the reduced oxidative stress and decreased concentrations of stress related phytohormones such as gibberellin and indole-3-acetic acid. Low dose of ZVI and Fe₃O₄ NPs treatments resulted in higher Fe accumulation in plants compared to Fe₂O₃ NPs treatment, by down-regulating the expression of IRT1 and YSL15. This study provides significant insights into the physiological impacts of Fe-based NPs in rice plants and their potential application in agriculture. ZVI and Fe₃O₄ NPs can be used as Fe-fertilizers to improve rice growth under Fe-deficient condition, which exist in many rice-growing regions of the world. However, dose should be carefully chosen as high dose (500 mg L⁻¹ in this study) of the Fe-based NPs can impair rice growth.