Effect of Green Synthesized Fe3O4NP Priming on Alfalfa Seed Germination Under Drought Stress

作者：Xinyue Wang, Mengting Ge, Xueqing He · 发表于：Plants · 年份：2025 · DOI：10.3390/plants14081236 · 被引用次数：10 · 研究领域：Seed Germination and Physiology、Phytase and its Applications、Ginkgo biloba and Cashew Applications

Drought stress is one of the key environmental factors restricting the germination of alfalfa seeds (Medicago sativa L.). Nanopriming is an innovative seed-priming technology able to meet economic, agronomic, and environmental needs in agriculture. However, the use of conventional nanomaterials is hampered by high costs, environmental risks, and biotoxicity. In this study, we synthesized iron oxide nanoparticles (Fe3O4NPs) using seasonal Ginkgo biloba leaf extracts (collected from August to November) obtained via an enzymatic ultrasonic-assisted method. The synthesized Fe3O4NPs were characterized using SEM, EDS, DLS, FTIR, UV-Vis, and XRD. To investigate the effects of Fe3O4NP priming on alfalfa seed germination under drought stress, germination and pot experiments were conducted with five Fe3O4NP priming concentrations (unprimed, 0, 20, 40, and 60 mg/L) and three PEG-6000 concentrations (0%, 10%, and 15%) to simulate normal, moderate, and severe drought conditions. The results showed that leaf extracts collected in November exhibited the highest flavonoid content (12.8 mg/g), successfully yielding bioactive-capped spherical Fe3O4NPs with a particle size of 369.5 ± 100.6 nm. Germination experiments revealed that under severe drought stress (15% PEG-6000), the 40 mg/L Fe3O4NP treatment most effectively enhanced seed vigor, increasing the germination rate, vigor index, and α-amylase activity by 22.1%, 189.4%, and 35.5% (p < 0.05), respectively, compared to controls. Under mo...