Carbon Nanotubes Dramatically Affecting Plant Growth !

For the first time, Scientist at University of Arkansas have reported the effect of penetration of plant seed coats by carbon nanotubes. Their research demonstrate that the exposure of carbon nanotubes to seeds of valuable crops, such as tomatoes, can increase the germination percentage and support and enhance the growth of seedlings.
The germination was found to be dramatically higher for seeds that germinated on medium containing CNTs (10−40 μg/mL) compared to control. Analytical methods indicated that the CNTs are able to penetrate the thick seed coat and support water uptake inside seeds, a process which can affect seed germination and growth of tomato seedlings.The activated process of water uptake could be responsible for the significantly faster germination rates and higher biomass production for the plants that were exposed to carbon nanotubes.
Researchers believe that furthering these findings could result in significant developments of improved plants for the area of energy, by taking advantage of the enhancement in the biomass of the plants when they are exposed to nanosized materials and fertilizers.
An observed positive effect of CNTs on the seed germination could have significant economic importance for agriculture, horticulture, and the energy sector, such as for production of biofuels.
paper can be located at ACS Nano, 2009, 3 (10), pp 3221–3227