Impact of Green-Synthesized Zinc Nanoparticles on Wheat Growth and Morphological Traits under Salt Stress

Faseeh Ur Rehman, Mohibe Ul Hussnain Asad, Mustafa Khan, Muhammad Khurrum Imtiaz and Ali Hamza

Saline Agriculture Research Center, Institute of Soil and Environmental Sciences, University of Agriculture Faisalabad.

Abstract

Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is an important staple crop that suffers from salinity stress, which limits growth and production worldwide. A study on the effect of green synthesized zinc nanoparticles (ZnNPs) on wheat growth under salt stress conditions was carried out to evaluate their activity against salinity. The study was carried out at Faisalabad University of Agriculture, where different concentrations of salts (0, 60 and 120 mM NaCl) and ZnNPs (0, 100, 150 and 200 mg/L) were applied. They measured the essential parameters like leaf area, chlorophyll, carotenoids and leaf number. According to result the ZnNPs exhibit highly significant mitigation effect of the salt stress at the concentration of 100 mg/L and 150 mg/L. The application of ZnNPs preserved leaf area, chlorophyll content, and carotenoid levels under salt stress at 60 mM and 120 mM NaCl more effectively as compared to the control plant. As a result, green-synthesized ZnNP can be helpful for the betterment of wheat in saline soils which will ultimately contribute towards sustainability.