Elucidating the role of silicon dioxide and titanium dioxide nanoparticles in mitigating the disease of the eggplant caused by Phomopsis vexans, Ralstonia solanacearum, and root-knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita

Abstract

Abstract Nanoparticles (NPs) have a critical function in mitigating the disease of fruits and vegetables. In the present investigation, the effects of three levels of concentrations (0.05, 0.10, and 0.20 mg/mL) of titanium dioxide NPs (TiO2-NPs) and silicon dioxide NPs (SiO2-NPs) were investigated against fungus Phomopsis vexans, bacterium Ralstonia solanacearum, and Meloidogyne incognita (root-knot nematode). The present investigation’s findings found that the application of SiO2-NPs was more efficient against test pathogens in comparison to TiO2-NPs. The best result produced by SiO2-NPs against pathogenic strain was used in the molecular docking investigation with the protein of R. solanacearum to better understand the interaction of active amino acids with SiO2-NPs. The obtained results revealed that the administration of 0.20 mg/mL foliar spray of SiO2-NPs in plants with M. incognita improves up to 37.92% of shoot dry weight and increases 70.42% of chlorophyll content. P. vexans growth was suppressed by 41.2% with 0.62 mm of inhibition zone when SiO2-NPs were given at a dosage of 0.20 mg/mL. The reductions in egg hatching and M. incognita (J2) mortality were greater in SiO2-NPs than in TiO2-NPs. The results of scanning electron microscopy confirmed that the application of both NPs harmed test pathogens. The confocal study also showed the penetration of NPs among test pathogens.