Silver nanoparticles as stimulating agents for arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi growth: a new perspective for agri-food

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) have recently been used in several fields, such as biomedicine, environmental treatment, food packaging and health care, due to their known antibacterial properties [1]. Nowadays, there is a widespread interest to use engineered nanomaterials in agriculture due to the possibility to obtain formulations for various agrochemicals, i.e., formulations of nanopesticides, nanofertilizers, nanosensors, and nanovectors [2,3]. The aim of the work is to enhance and increase the production of mycorrhized plants, a technique whereby fungi attach to the roots of a specific plant creating a symbiotic relationship, with Tuber melanosporum, also known as black truffle, through the controlled use of nanotechnology. This project belongs to TANA Regione Lazio activities. For this purpose, AgNPs with size of 50 nm were obtained through green synthesis approach using water as a solvent and following a bottom-up method. Two different ligands were used to prevent the aggregation of AgNPs during their growth: 3-mercapto-1-propansulfonate sodium salt (3MPS) and poly(acrylic acid) (PAA), to obtain negatively charged AgNPs-3MPS and AgNPs-PAA. Their size and stability in both aqueous and buffer media were evaluated by dynamic light scattering (DLS) and UV-vis for an interval of 0-30 days in the range of 5-50 ug mL-1. References [1] N. Baig, I. Kammakakam, W. Falath, I. Kammakakam, Mater. Adv., 2021, 2, 1821–1871. [2] C. An, C. Sun, N. Li, B. Huang, J. Jiang, Y. Shen, C. Wang, X. Zhao, B. Cui, C. Wang, X. Li, S. Zhan, F. Gao, Z. Zeng, H. Cui, Y. Wang, J. Nanobiotechnology, 2022, 20, 1–19. [3] I. Schiesaro, L. Burratti, C. Meneghini, I. Fratoddi, P. Prosposito, J. Lim, C. Scheu, I. Venditti, G. Iucci, C. Battocchio, J. Phys. Chem. C 2020, 124, 25975−25983.