Abstract
Zinc (Zn) in excess is very toxic for plants and can limit agriculture. Carbon-based engineered nanomaterials with high electron mobility and electron-accepting capability may be essential for mitigating heavy metal stress. In the present study, the protective role of some fullerene C60 derivatives (fullerenol [C60(OH)22–24] and the arginine C60 [C60(C6H13N4O2)8H8]) were tested for the first time against Zn toxicity in Cucumis sativus L. (cucumber). Plants were grown hydroponically at three concentrations of fullerenes (0, 2, and 10 mg L−1) without or with 40 µM Zn for 17 days. Plant growth, leaf chlorosis, and nutritional imbalances in combination with a metabolomics approach were analyzed. The Zn-treated plants show chlorotic leaves, the retarded growth of shoots (−20%), and roots (−49%) and nutrient imbalance. Addition of fullerene C60 derivatives suppressed loss in the dry biomass of leaves (15%) and roots (40%; fullerenol only) induced by high Zn. However, they did not alter leaf chlorophyll, shoot dry biomass, and elemental composition, including leaf Zn. Moreover, the Zn of xylem sup from roots remained unchanged by fullerenes. In an adsorption experiment, the amounts of Zn adsorbed by tested C60 were below the detection limits. The addition of C60 derivatives slightly changed the metabolite profiling in stressed plants. Nevertheless, in fullerene-treated plants, the abundance of some Zn-responsible metabolites tended to be altered in the opposite direction as compared with the metabolic responses to excessive Zn alone. There were several up-regulated metabolites protecting plants under oxidative stress. We speculate that fullerene C60 derivatives have the ability to increase antioxidant non-enzyme activity at least, improving some growth parameters. However, fullerenes did not reduce Zn transport from the root to the shoots. We concluded that the low capacity of these compounds to buffer Zn in the root zone might limit the efficiency of fullerene derivatives against Zn toxicity. Our results provide new evidence for the crucial role of Zn–fullerene interactions in the amelioration of Zn toxicity in plants.
Abstract from the paper’s OpenAlex record; open copy licensed cc-by. Read at the source ↗
The text the model read, with the source record’s inline markup (italics, sub- and superscripts) rendered and its character entities decoded; quote offsets refer to the raw text.
Claims 17
Claim · model-written summary
Excess zinc produced chlorotic cucumber leaves and reduced shoot growth by 20%.
- Taxon
- Cucumber
Cucumis sativust0 - Organ / stage
- shootse0
- Treatment
- Zn-treatede0
- Outcome
- growth of shootse0
- Direction
- retardede0
- Value
- −20%e0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“The Zn-treated plants show chlorotic leaves, the retarded growth of shoots (−20%), and roots (−49%) and nutrient imbalance.”
t0“Cucumber”
Claim · model-written summary
Excess zinc reduced cucumber root growth by 49%.
- Taxon
- CucumberCucumis sativust0
- Outcome
- rootse0
- Direction
- retardede0
- Value
- −49%e0
Not reportedTreatmentComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the retarded growth of shoots (−20%), and roots (−49%)”
t0“Cucumber”
Claim · model-written summary
Zinc treatment caused chlorotic cucumber leaves and nutrient imbalance.
- Taxon
- CucumberCucumis sativust0
- Treatment
- Zn-treatede0
- Outcome
- chlorotic leavese0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“The Zn-treated plants show chlorotic leaves, the retarded growth of shoots (−20%), and roots (−49%) and nutrient imbalance.”
t0“Cucumber”
Claim · model-written summary
Zinc treatment caused nutrient imbalance in cucumber.
- Taxon
- CucumberCucumis sativust0
- Outcome
- nutrient imbalancee0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“nutrient imbalance”
t0“Cucumber”
Claim · model-written summary
Fullerene derivatives suppressed zinc-induced loss of cucumber leaf dry biomass by 15%.
- Taxon
- CucumberCucumis sativust0
- Treatment
- fullerene C60 derivativese0
- Outcome
- dry biomass of leavese0
- Direction
- suppressed losse0
- Value
- 15%e0
- Comparator
- high Zne0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Addition of fullerene C60 derivatives suppressed loss in the dry biomass of leaves (15%) and roots (40%; fullerenol only) induced by high Zn.”
t0“Cucumber”
Claim · model-written summary
Fullerenol suppressed zinc-induced loss of cucumber root dry biomass by 40%.
- Taxon
- CucumberCucumis sativust0
- Treatment
- fullerenol onlye0
- Outcome
- rootse0
- Direction
- suppressed losse0
- Value
- 40%e0
- Comparator
- high Zne0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Addition of fullerene C60 derivatives suppressed loss in the dry biomass of leaves (15%) and roots (40%; fullerenol only) induced by high Zn.”
t0“Cucumber”
Claim · model-written summary
Fullerene derivatives did not alter cucumber leaf chlorophyll.
- Taxon
- CucumberCucumis sativust0
- Outcome
- leaf chlorophylle0
- Direction
- did not altere0
Not reportedTreatmentComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“However, they did not alter leaf chlorophyll, shoot dry biomass, and elemental composition, including leaf Zn.”
t0“Cucumber”
Claim · model-written summary
Fullerene derivatives did not alter cucumber shoot dry biomass.
- Taxon
- CucumberCucumis sativust0
- Outcome
- shoot dry biomasse0
- Direction
- did not altere0
Not reportedTreatmentComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“did not alter leaf chlorophyll, shoot dry biomass, and elemental composition, including leaf Zn”
t0“Cucumber”
Claim · model-written summary
Fullerene derivatives did not alter cucumber elemental composition, including leaf zinc.
- Taxon
- CucumberCucumis sativust0
- Outcome
- elemental composition, including leaf Zne0
- Direction
- did not altere0
Not reportedTreatmentComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“did not alter leaf chlorophyll, shoot dry biomass, and elemental composition, including leaf Zn”
t0“Cucumber”
Claim · model-written summary
Fullerenes left zinc in cucumber root xylem sap unchanged.
- Taxon
- CucumberCucumis sativust0
- Treatment
- fullerenese0
- Outcome
- Zn of xylem sup from rootse0
- Direction
- remained unchangede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the Zn of xylem sup from roots remained unchanged by fullerenes”
t0“Cucumber”
Claim · model-written summary
Zinc adsorption by tested C60 was below detection limits.
- Taxon
- CucumberCucumis sativust0
- Outcome
- amounts of Zn adsorbed by tested C60e0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the amounts of Zn adsorbed by tested C60 were below the detection limits”
t0“Cucumber”
Claim · model-written summary
C60 derivatives slightly changed metabolite profiles in zinc-stressed cucumber.
- Taxon
- CucumberCucumis sativust0
- Treatment
- C60 derivativese0
- Outcome
- metabolite profilinge0
Not reportedComparatorDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“The addition of C60 derivatives slightly changed the metabolite profiling in stressed plants.”
t0“Cucumber”
Claim · model-written summary
Some zinc-responsive metabolites tended to change oppositely under fullerene treatment versus excess zinc alone.
- Taxon
- CucumberCucumis sativust0
- Outcome
- abundance of some Zn-responsible metabolitese0
- Direction
- opposite directione0
- Comparator
- excessive Zn alonee0
Not reportedTreatment
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the abundance of some Zn-responsible metabolites tended to be altered in the opposite direction as compared with the metabolic responses to excessive Zn alone”
t0“Cucumber”
Claim · model-written summary
Several metabolites associated with oxidative stress protection were upregulated.
- Taxon
- CucumberCucumis sativust0
- Outcome
- up-regulated metabolitese0
- Qualifier
- oxidative stresse0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“There were several up-regulated metabolites protecting plants under oxidative stress.”
t0“Cucumber”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors speculate that fullerene derivatives increase antioxidant non-enzyme activity and improve some growth parameters.
- Taxon
- CucumberCucumis sativust0
- Treatment
- fullerene C60 derivativese0
- Outcome
- some growth parameterse0
- Qualifier
- antioxidant non-enzyme activitye0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“We speculate that fullerene C60 derivatives have the ability to increase antioxidant non-enzyme activity at least, improving some growth parameters.”
t0“Cucumber”
Claim · model-written summary
Fullerenes did not reduce zinc movement from cucumber roots to shoots.
- Taxon
- CucumberCucumis sativust0
- Treatment
- fullerenese0
- Outcome
- Zn transport from the root to the shootse0
- Direction
- did not reducee0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“fullerenes did not reduce Zn transport from the root to the shoots”
t0“Cucumber”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors concluded that low zinc buffering in the root zone may limit fullerene efficacy against zinc toxicity.
- Taxon
- CucumberCucumis sativust0
- Outcome
- efficiency of fullerene derivatives against Zn toxicitye0
- Qualifier
- low capacity of these compounds to buffer Zn in the root zonee0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the low capacity of these compounds to buffer Zn in the root zone might limit the efficiency of fullerene derivatives against Zn toxicity”
t0“Cucumber”
The same questions in other papers
fullerene · nutrient: content · Cucumis sativus (cucumber)Positive and negative results
1 in the opposite direction
- positive
zinc atom · growth · Cucumis sativus (cucumber)Positive and negative results
1 paper in the same direction as this paper · 10 in the opposite direction
- positive
- positive
- positive
8 papers more in this group
See all 12 papers →Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.