Silver nanoparticles phytotoxicity mechanisms

Abstract The production and utilization of nanoparticles (NPs) is a rapidly growing field of industry. Among different types of NPs, silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are of particular interest because of their well-known antimicrobial properties, which make them very interesting for potential application in agriculture and food production. However, increasing usage and unregulated release of AgNPs into aquatic and terrestrial systems bring concerns about their impact on the environment and living organisms, among which plants, as sessile organisms, are particularly affected. In this chapter, we summarize the novel findings on AgNP stability in biological media applied for plant exposure. Moreover, we also present AgNP roles in the promotion of cytotoxic and genotoxic effects, as well as in changes in gene and protein expression, to reveal the molecular response triggered by AgNPs in plants and assess their potential phytotoxicity mechanisms.