Kachel-Górecka Magdalena, Sokal Karolina, Stryjecka Małgorzata
Department of Machine Operation and Production Processes Management, Faculty of Production Engineering, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, 28 Głęboka St., 20-612 Lublin, Poland.
Institute of Human Nutrition and Agriculture, The University College of Applied Sciences in Chełm, Pocztowa 54, 22-100 Chełm, Poland.
Plants (Basel). 2025 Aug 12;14(16):2512. doi: 10.3390/plants14162512.
The increasing integration of physical and nanotechnological treatments in agriculture has unlocked new possibilities for enhancing seed performance and the functional properties of seedlings. This study aimed to determine the effect of the coupled use of pulsed electric field (PEF) and the soaking (coating) of sunflower seeds in metal nanoparticles (AgNP and CuNP) on their germination capacity and on the stem and root length, content of pigments (chlorophyll , chlorophyll , carotenoids), color profile, and antioxidative properties (FRAP, polyphenols, TPC, ABTS, and DPPH) of sunflower seedlings. The study results enable the drawing of explicit conclusions that the higher PEF energy applied (5.5 kJ kg) and seed treatment with nanoparticle solutions, in most cases, diminished the germination capacity of sunflower seeds (from 3.50 to 44.11%) compared to the control samples. A decreased seedling stem length was determined at both PEF energy levels tested, i.e., 1 kJ kg and 5.5 kJ kg, with the values obtained being 11.86% to 46.14% lower compared to the respective control samples. The root length of the seedlings decreased as well, i.e., by 7.34 to 41%. The content of chlorophyll (chl ) increased in the seedlings from all experimental variants compared to the control, whereas that of chlorophyll (chl ) decreased by 3.24 to 7.86% in the control variant with PEF and CuNP. The FRAP value, total content of polyphenols, and TPC ranged from 10.20 to 12.95 (mg TE g DM), from 42.23 to 49.19 (mg GAE g DM), and from 20.20 to 23.90 (mg GAE g DM), respectively, and showed an upward trend compared to the control samples. The results of this study indicate that further research is needed to understand how the analyzed treatments affect seedling growth and demonstrate reduced germination capacity and enhanced antioxidant activity due to the synergistic effect of a high PEF and nanoparticle solutions.
物理处理与纳米技术在农业中的日益融合为提高种子性能和幼苗功能特性带来了新的可能性。本研究旨在确定脉冲电场（PEF）与向日葵种子在金属纳米颗粒（AgNP和CuNP）中浸泡（包衣）联合使用对其发芽能力以及向日葵幼苗茎和根长度、色素（叶绿素a、叶绿素b、类胡萝卜素）含量、颜色特征和抗氧化特性（FRAP、多酚、总酚含量、ABTS和DPPH）的影响。研究结果得出明确结论：与对照样品相比，在大多数情况下，施加较高的PEF能量（5.5 kJ/kg）以及用纳米颗粒溶液处理种子会降低向日葵种子的发芽能力（从3.50%降至44.11%）。在所测试的两个PEF能量水平，即1 kJ/kg和5.5 kJ/kg下，均测定出幼苗茎长度减少，与各自对照样品相比，所获得的值低11.86%至46.14%。幼苗的根长度也减少了，即减少了7.34%至41%。与对照相比，所有实验变体的幼苗中叶绿素a（chl a）含量增加，而在PEF和CuNP处理的对照变体中，叶绿素b（chl b）含量下降了3.24%至7.86%。FRAP值、多酚总含量和总酚含量分别为10.20至12.95（mg TE/g DM）、42.23至49.19（mg GAE/g DM）和20.20至23.90（mg GAE/g DM），与对照样品相比呈上升趋势。本研究结果表明，需要进一步研究以了解所分析的处理如何影响幼苗生长，并证明由于高PEF和纳米颗粒溶液的协同作用导致发芽能力降低和抗氧化活性增强。
