Nanotechnology strategies to increase the tolerance of native seedlings to drought for forest restoration purposes

Abstract

Forest restoration is an important strategy for rehabilitating degraded areas, yet its success is hindered by high seedling mortality post-planting. This issue has been exacerbated by increasingly frequent drought events, attributed to global climate change. Thus, new strategies and studies exploring plant mechanisms for drought tolerance should be encouraged. In this context, nitric oxide (NO) has emerged as a crucial signaling molecule produced by plants, modulating growth, development, and enhancing plant tolerance to stress. NO donors have been utilized to elevate endogenous NO levels in plants and activate responses associated with this signaling molecule. Furthermore, nanotechnology provides a novel and promising approach to enhance NO delivery to plants, protecting against rapid degradation and allowing for more controlled release. Therefore, this project aims to assess the potential of exogenous application of a NO donor in its free and encapsulated forms as an inducer of seedling vigor in native plant species relevant to forest restoration under drought conditions. Two experiments will be conducted: the first will determine the optimal NO donor concentration for initial seedling development under drought conditions. The second experiment aims to elucidate mechanisms and characteristics associated with potential drought tolerance in seedlings, examining antioxidant defense, protein nitrosylation, and endogenous NO production. Nanotechnology is envisioned to represent a breakthrough in environmental science.