Issue 25, 2023

Persistent luminescent nanoparticles for plant imaging: toward exploring the distribution of nanoparticles in plants

Abstract

Nanotoxicology on plants has raised great concerns about the prevalence of nanoparticles (NPs) in ecosystems, and the most fundamental aspect is to assess the fate of NPs in plants. Nonetheless, the lack of high-sensitivity tracking techniques in vivo constraints intensive research on NP distribution in plants. Herein, we have overcome this limitation by first introducing persistent luminescent nanoparticles (PLNPs) as an imaging probe, which can detect the distribution of NPs in whole plants with high sensitivity by completely eliminating interference from autofluorescence. We synthesized two differently surface-charged PLNPs with excellent biosafety and then exposed these NPs to plants in the hydroponic medium. Persistent luminescence (PersL) images visually showed the disparate accumulation of PLNPs in plants. PersL signals of positively charged PLNPs were observed in the whole exposed portion of the plant roots, while negatively charged PLNPs were mainly in the root collars instead of the exposed portion. With prolonged exposure, the presence of PersL signals in leaves indicated the long-distance translocation of differently charged PLNPs from roots to leaves via hypocotyls. For further confirmation of imaging results, the distribution of NPs in plants was investigated using electron microscopy. Based on their unique optical properties, PLNPs provide a promising strategy for tracking NP's fate in plants.

Graphical abstract: Persistent luminescent nanoparticles for plant imaging: toward exploring the distribution of nanoparticles in plants

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
12 mar 2023
Accepted
20 apr 2023
First published
04 may 2023

J. Mater. Chem. B, 2023,11, 5767-5776

Persistent luminescent nanoparticles for plant imaging: toward exploring the distribution of nanoparticles in plants

K. Yu, X. Sun, R. Wang, P. Lin, L. Song, J. Shi, F. Zhang and Y. Zhang, J. Mater. Chem. B, 2023, 11, 5767 DOI: 10.1039/D3TB00517H

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