Magister Scientiae - MSc (Biotechnology) / The expansion of nanotechnology, resulting in multitudes of consumer and industrial
products, causes concern amongst the scientific community regarding the risks associated
with the release of nanomaterials into the environment and its subsequent effects on plants.
Therefore, the focus of this study was aimed at investigating the effects of MPA-capped CdTe
and carbon QDs on legumes plants namely P. vulgaris and G. max. Fluorescent imaging
revealed that QDs were translocated from the roots to the aerial parts of the plant and
accumulated in the edible parts of P. vulgaris. Subsequent physiological and biochemical
tests revealed that both QD types induced oxidative stress as biological markers for stress
including lipid peroxidation and cell death were elevated. In addition, carbon QDs displayed
lower toxicity in comparison to MPA-CdTe QDs, but still possessed the ability to induce
oxidative stress in plant cells. However, the effects were more pronounced in G. max in
comparison to P. vulgaris; and more so with MPA-CdTe QDs than carbon QDs. Furthermore,
MPA-CdTe and carbon QDs altered the concentrations and translocation of essential macro
and microelements that are required for plant growth and development. This may have
detrimental effects on crop productivity and yield, with negative implications on food quality
and food security. / 2021-08-31
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:uwc/oai:etd.uwc.ac.za:11394/6259 |
| Date | January 2017 |
| Creators | Omar, Zaahira |
| Contributors | Keyster, Marshall |
| Publisher | University of the Western Cape |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Rights | University of the Western Cape |
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