Zinc oxide and copper oxide nanoparticles as a potential solution for controlling Phytophthora infestans, the late blight disease of potatoes

Abstract

Abstract Late blight, caused by Phytophthora infestans, is a major potato disease globally, leading to significant economic losses of $6.7 billion. To address this issue, we evaluated the antifungal activity of ZnO and CuO nanoparticles (NPs) against P. infestans for the first time in laboratory and greenhouse conditions. Nanoparticles were synthesized via a chemical precipitation method and characterized using various techniques. The XRD results revealed that the synthesized ZnO nanoparticles had a pure hexagonal wurtzite crystalline structure, whereas the CuO NPs had a monoclinic crystalline structure. TEM images confirmed the synthesis of quasi-spherical nanoparticles with an average size of 11.5 nm for ZnO NPs and 24.5 nm for CuO NPs. The UV–Vis Spectral Report showed peaks corresponding to ZnO NPs at 364 nm and 252 nm for CuO NPs.In an in vitro study, both ZnO and CuO NPs significantly (p < 0.05) inhibited the radial growth of P. infestans at all tested concentrations compared to the untreated control. The highest inhibitory effect of 100% was observed with ZnO and CuO NPs at 30 mg/L. A lower inhibition of 60.4% was observed with 10 mg/L CuO NPs. Under greenhouse conditions, 100 mg/L ZnO NPs was the most effective treatment for controlling potato late blight, with an efficacy of 71%. CuO NPs at 100 mg/L followed closely, with an efficacy of 69%. Based on these results, ZnO and CuO NPs are recommended as promising eco-friendly fungicides for the management and control of potato late blight after further research. Graphical abstract

Keywords

• P. infestans
• Zinc oxide (ZnO) and Copper oxide (CuO) nanoparticles (NPs)
• Synthesis and characterization
• In vitro
• Greenhouse conditions
• Antifungal activity