Unraveling approaches of silica nanoparticles for next-generation in agricultural sustainability

Agriculture faces significant challenges including climate change, resource inefficiency, environmental degradation, and necessitating sustainable solutions. Silica nanoparticles (SiNPs), with their unique physio-chemical properties, have emerged as a promising tool to enhance agricultural productivity while reducing ecological impact. This review article explores the potential of SiNPs to revolutionize modern farming by addressing critical inefficiencies in traditional methods. The overreliance on synthetic inputs has led to soil degradation, water contamination, and declining crop resilience. SiNPs offer an innovative alternative by improving nutrient delivery systems, enhancing stress tolerance, and reducing the environmental footprint of agricultural practices. SiNPs significantly enhance nutrient use efficiency (NUE) through controlled and sustained release mechanisms, minimizing losses and ensuring consistent crop uptake. Their application also bolsters plant resilience against abiotic stresses such as drought and salinity, as well as biotic threats from pests and pathogens. Mechanistically, SiNPs improve photosynthetic efficiency, regulate stress-responsive genes, and fortify plant cell walls, creating both biochemical and mechanical defenses. Moreover, SiNPs are biocompatible and environmentally safe, degrading into bioavailable monosilicic acid that enriches soil health and supports beneficial microbial communities. They mitigate heavy metal toxicity and reduce dependency on conventional agrochemicals, aligning with global sustainability goals. This assessment explores the functional properties, application and mechanism of SiNPs for management of biotic and abiotic stress controlling and paves the way for sustainable agriculture.