77 / 2021-06-30 16:55:14

Quantitative evaluation of the effects of long-term exposure engineering ZnO NPs on wheat growth and food safety in the field environment

ZnO-NPs,Wheat (Triticum aestivum),Long-term exposure,Food safety

Engineering Nanomaterials (ENMs)may be released during production, use, and disposal. For various forms of emissions, transformation processes and biological effects may occur in the soil-plant system. ZnO nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs), as a common metal-based nano-material, long-term exposure in the field environment has a relatively important potential threat to plant growth and food safety. This study investigated the use of ZnO-NPs in soil containing low levels of Zn, examining how it influenced the growth and grain safety of wheat (Triticum aestivum) in a field experiment It was found that ZnO-NPs had little effect on both yield and the concentration of other elements within in grain, but significantly increased the grain concentration of Zn. The elements were mainly distributed in the crease tissue and aleurone layer of the grain which showed a tendency of aggregation. ZnO NPs could not be absorbed into the grain through plant organs and the wheat grain Zn mainly existed in the form of Zn-phosphate and Zn-phytate. Long-term exposure of ZnO-NPs in the field environment had no significant security risks. In all treatments, the concentration of elements in the endosperm was fewer and the nutritional quality was low.