Nanotechnology-Enabled Strategies for Enhancing Plant Abiotic Stress Tolerance

Abstract

Amid increasingly complex climate scenarios, abiotic stresses such as drought, extreme temperatures, and soil salinization have emerged as primary bottlenecks limiting the sustainable development of modern agriculture. Because of their unique nanoscale effects and physicochemical properties, nanoparticles (NPs) can penetrate plant tissue barriers, offering a novel approach to enhance crop resilience to environmental stresses. This review systematically summarizes the core mechanisms by which NPs enhance plant stress tolerance. NPs primarily mitigate the overaccumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and cellular oxidative stress by modulating antioxidant systems, thereby maintaining the physical integrity of photosynthetic apparatuses and cell membranes. Additionally, NPs regulate phytohormone signaling networks and the transcription of stress-responsive genes, while supporting ion compartmentalization and osmotic homeostasis in complex habitats such as coastal saline environments. Integrating multi-omics analyses, this review discusses plant metabolic responses to NPs and their dose-dependent toxicological effects. Addressing bottlenecks in practical application, we evaluate barriers to field-scale translation, the environmental release and migration of nanomaterials across water, air, and the food supply, and associated detection methods and safety risks, including the specific case of widely used silver nanoparticles. Future research must rely on multidisciplinary integration to optimize targeted delivery networks, premised on well-defined risk-assessment standards and viable cost–benefit balances, ultimately providing a scientific basis for enhancing agricultural climate resilience.