Effects of silver sulfide nanomaterials on mycorrhizal colonization of tomato plants and soil microbial communities in biosolid-amended soil

Jonathan D. Judy, Jason K. Kirby, Courtney Creamer, Mike J. McLaughlin, Cathy Fiebiger, Claire Wright, Timothy R. Cavagnaro, Paul M. Bertsch

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

88 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

We investigated effects of Ag2S engineered nanomaterials (ENMs), polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) coated Ag ENMs (PVP-Ag), and Ag+ on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), their colonization of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), and overall microbial community structure in biosolids-amended soil. Concentration-dependent uptake was measured in all treatments. Plants exposed to 100 mg kg-1 PVP-Ag ENMs and 100 mg kg-1 Ag+ exhibited reduced biomass and greatly reduced mycorrhizal colonization. Bacteria, actinomycetes and fungi were inhibited by all treatment classes, with the largest reductions measured in 100 mg kg-1 PVP-Ag ENMs and 100 mg kg-1 Ag+. Overall, Ag2S ENMs were less toxic to plants, less disruptive to plant-mycorrhizal symbiosis, and less inhibitory to the soil microbial community than PVP-Ag ENMs or Ag+. However, significant effects were observed at 1 mg kg-1 Ag2S ENMs, suggesting that the potential exists for microbial communities and the ecosystem services they provide to be disrupted by environmentally relevant concentrations of Ag2S ENMs.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)256-263
Number of pages8
JournalEnvironmental Pollution
Volume206
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Nov 2015
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Nanoparticles
  • Nanotechnology
  • Nanotoxicology

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