Hydroponics offers a viable solution for obtaining plant products that are rich in micronutrients and ultramicronutrients, such as selenium. Selenium plays a crucial role in strengthening the body's ...immune defense and acts as a potent antioxidant. Low levels of selenium have been associated with an increased risk of heart attacks, strokes, and cancer. Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni (SrB), a relatively new crop in plant cultivation, was the focus of the present study. SrB has numerous medicinal and prophylactic properties, and its leaves are rich in macro- and microelements, vitamins, and diterpene glycosides. These diterpene glycosides, when extracted from the plant material, exhibit a sweetness that is 200-300 times greater than that of sugar. The study aimed to investigate the effects of exogenous application of varying amounts of selenium to the nutrient solution and foliar feeding of SrB plants with a selenium aqueous solution. The productivity of SrB and selenium accumulation in the leaves were assessed under both hydroponic and soil cultivation conditions in the Ararat Valley. Comparative analyses were also conducted on biometric and biochemical indicators, as well as the productivity of SrB cultivated using different fillers, including black volcanic slag, red volcanic slag, and gravel, in hydroponic and soil environments. The findings of this research hold practical significance as they serve as a foundation for the development of biotechnological approaches to enhance selenium enrichment in various crops. By applying these strategies, crop cultivation methods can be improved, and the selenium content in plant products can be enhanced. This optimization of crop production techniques can increase the nutritional value and potential health benefits of selenium-enriched plant products.
•Plastic waste's volume follows their demand volumes and population increase in cities.•Poor post-consumers’ plastic and microplastic wastes disposal endangers the agroecosystems.•Microplastic ...disrupts the food chain, supplies contaminants in the agroecosystem.•Non-conventional systems are offering controlled agroecosystems for safer food productions•Proper legislations can further eliminate plastic hazard to the food chain and human health
This work reviews microplastic's impact on agroecosystem components and possible effects on the food chain. Microplastics are sized < 5 µm, made up of diverse chemical constituents, and come from several sources. The agroecosystems reportedly receive an estimated 1.15 to 2.41 million tonnes of plastic wastes annually. Microplastic factors like increasing anthropogenic activities, tiny sizes, ubiquity, sheer volume, and composite chemicals greatly influence the environment. Their impact could be directly on the food substances or indirectly on the ecosystems that support the primary producers of the food chain: alters plant's growth and developments, blocks organisms’ digestive/roots system, attachment for multiplying organisms, vectors of toxic compounds, disrupts the activities of microbial decomposers and nutrient cycles, etc. Microplastic contamination of the agroecosystems reduce food yields, impact the food chain components negatively, food security, and human health. The adoption of regenerative agriculture is staging the cultivation of food substances away from contaminable systems while using sustainable sources of water and minerals. The consequences of increasing microplastic volume and attendant impacts make researchers evaluate alternative solutions for microplastic abatement: bio-based plastics and the adoption of clean remedial biotechnologies. These alternate solutions are expedient as the total elimination of plastic (microplastic) waste may not be fully feasible- considering their recalcitrance and non-biodegradability. Also, policymakers should promulgate laws that mitigate and replace single-use and non-biodegradable plastic materials with bio-based or biodegradable alternatives.
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To overcome the scarcity of fresh water, concerned authorities worldwide are bound to think about remediation and reuse of domestic and industrial effluents. The present review study on integrated ...vermifiltrationwith hydroponic system explains mechanism followed in system and presently the reutilization and remediation of domestic and industrial effluents. It explains the result of integrated vermifiltration and recognizes factors such as clogging, hydraulic loading rate or rain on bed, salinity, and sunlight affect the efficiency of system. The study also focuses on limitations associated with vermifiltration and also suggestions have been made for enhancing the sustainability and performance of existing practices. After literature review, integrated vermifiltration with hydroponic system considered as a natural and eco-friendly method for treating polluted water. Active zone of vermifilter remove organics, nitrate from nitrogen, total and dissolved phosphorus from wastewater. The vermifiltration and integrated vermifiltration with macrophyte able remove chemical oxygen demand (COD) in the range (53.7%–64.4%) and (75.5%–82.8%) respectively. The integrated system reduces land consumption and wastewater can be reutilized in cultivation.
•Mechanism behind integrated vermifiltration has been discussed.•Limitation and benefit of the system is identified.•Future research prospective has been identified and explained.•Integrated vermifiltation with hydroponic plants are able to degrade waste.•Reutilization of treated wastewater has also been identified.
This study aimed to determine the effect of micro-nanobubble generator (MNBG) aeration on the cultivation of spinach (Amaranthus viridis) and pakchoi (Brassica rapa chinensis) hydroponic wicks. The ...basic principle of this system is that the axis capillary action flows nutrients to the planting medium. There are no moving parts so the nutrients can settle rapidly and the dissolved oxygen content is limited. Micro-nanobubbles (MNB) have the characteristics of a long residence time in the water so that their generation can operate intermittenttly. This study aims to determine the effect of applying (MNBG) with a flow rate of 0.98 L/minute on root length, plant height, and wet weight of spinach and pakchoi plants in wick hydroponics. Cultivation was hold on a free environment. There are three kinds of treatment; without aeration (N0), aeration 15 minutes x 4 for 24 hours (N15), and aeration 30 minutes x 4 for 24 hours (N30). Variations in the types of materials used in this study were spinach and pakchoi, as per treatment was repeat five samples. The study used a Randomized Block Design (RBD). The measurement results compared by the One-Way ANOVA test (5% level), then continued with Duncan's test to determine the difference. The results showed that there was an effect of applying intermittentt MNBG aeration on the average weight and height of the spinach plants, N15 treatment was more effective than the N0 and N30. Intermittentt MNBG aeration did not show a significant difference in the average weight of pakchoi. Keywords: Aeration, Hydroponics, Spinach, Pakchoi, wick
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•Three purslane cultivars grown under hydroponics conditions were studied.•The combination of 1H NMR data with statistical analysis allows to classify purslane cultivars.•Mixquic ...cultivar have the best nutritional properties.•The results obtained provide important metabolic information to classify purslane cultivars.
Purslane (Portulaca oleracea L.) has a high content of nutrients and medicinal effects that depend on the genotype, harvesting time, and production system. The objective of the present research work was to elucidate the NMR-based metabolomics profiling of three native purslane cultivars from Mexico (Xochimilco, Mixquic, and Cuautla) grown under hydroponic conditions and harvested in three different times (32, 39, and 46 days after emergence). Thirty-nine metabolites identified in the 1H NMR spectra of aerial parts of purslane, 5 sugars, 15 amino acids, 8 organic acids, 3 caffeoylquinic acids, as well as 2 alcohols and 3 nucleosides, choline, O-phosphocholine and trigonelline were also detected. A total of 37 compounds were detected in native purslane from Xochimilco and Cuautla, whereas 39 compounds were detected in purslane from Mixquic. Principal component analysis (PCA) and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) separated the cultivars into three clusters. Mixquic cultivar had the highest number of differential compounds (amino acids and carbohydrates), followed by Xochimilco and Cuautla cultivars, respectively. Changes in the metabolome were observed in latest times of harvest for all the cultivars studied. The differential compounds were glucose, fructose, galactose, pyruvate, choline, and 2-hydroxysobutyrate. The results obtained in this investigation may contribute to selecting the best cultivar of purslane and the best time in which the levels of nutrients are optimal.
Hydroponic effluent (HE) contains a reasonable amount of residual nutrients. Therefore, HE could be used as a low-cost growth media for microalgae mediated resource recovery and water recycling. ...However, the presence of root exudates (particularly, benzoic acid) may lead to toxicity in microalgae.In the present study, the allelopathic effects of benzoic acid on microalgal growth was tested. During 96 h batch growth, Chlorella pyrenoidosa showed the highest biomass concentration (0.064–0.037 g.L−1) compared to Chlorella sorokiniana (0.09–0.26 g.L−1) at the tested benzoic acid doses. Moreover, both the species showed growth stimulation and growth inhibition up to certain benzoic acid doses. Hence, both the microalgal species showed allelopathic behaviour at different doses of benzoic acid. Further, the observed half effective concentration (96 h EC50) were 65.10 mg.L−1 and 105.27 mg.L−1, respectively, for Chlorella pyrenoidosa and C. sorokiniana with 95% confidence limits. Further, Haldane's model best fitted with experimental data of both the microalgae (r ∼ 0.99). Overall, the study reveals that the HE with low benzoic acid dose may serve as a suitable growth media for microalgae. However, further in-depth research interventions using real HE are desirable to determine its real-world applicability.
•Allelopathic effect of varying doses of benzoic acid on Chlorella spp. evaluated.•Improved microalgal growth at low doses (<40 mg L– 1) of benzoic acid.•C. pyrenoidosa more sensitive to benzoic acid compared to C. sorokiniana.•Haldane's model showed the best fit with microalgae growth kinetic data.