Bifunctional role of some biogenic nanoparticles in controlling wilt disease and promoting growth of common bean

Abstract In the present era, nanomaterials are emerging as a powerful tool for management of plant disease and improving crop production to meet the growing global need for food. Thus, this paper was conducted to explore the effectiveness of five different types of nanoparticles (NPs) viz., Co3O4NPs, CuONPs, Fe3O4NPs, NiONPs, and ZnONPs as treatments for Fusarium wilt as well as their role in promoting growth of the common bean plant. The five types of NPs were applied as a treatment for wilt in two ways, therapeutic and protective plans under greenhouse conditions. In vivo experiments showed that all types of NPs significantly increased disease control and diminished the symptoms of Fusarium wilt for both incidence and severity. The recorded values for disease control using the respective NPs during the protective plan were 82.77, 60.17, 49.67, 38.23, and 70.59%. Meanwhile these values were 92.84, 64.67, 51.33, 45.61, 73.84% during the therapeutic plan. Moreover, CuONPs during the protective plan were the best among the five types of NPs employed in terms of wilt disease management. Regarding the use of these NPs as growth promoters, the obtained results confirmed the effectiveness of the five types of NPs in enhancing vegetative growth of the plant under greenhouse conditions, in comparison with control. Among the five NPs, CuONPs improved the plant vegetative growth and particularly increased the content of the photosynthetic pigments; chlorophyll-a (2.96 mg/g), -b (1.93 mg/g), and total carotenoids (1.16 mg/g). These findings suggest the successful and potential exploitation of nanomaterials in agriculture deployed as nano-based products including nano-fungicides and nano-fertilizers. In terms of sustainability, this promising and exceptional multifunctional role of these nanomaterials will surely exert positive impacts on both the environment and sustainable agriculture.