Inhibition of the Germination of Root Parasitic Plants by Zeolitic Imidazolate Framework-8

Graphical Abstract

We have demonstrated that the application of Am-ZIF-8 can significantly control the germination of Striga seeds to boost cereal crops production most especially in the Middle East and Africa. From our results, we then hypothesized that the excellent inhibition performance shown by Am-ZIF-8 is due to the formation of unsaturated Zn−N coordination number during amorphization.

Abstract

Crystalline ZIF-8 (C-ZIF-8) and amorphous ZIF-8 (Am-ZIF-8) were prepared and investigated to control the germination of Striga hermonthica, a root parasitic plant, which threatens cereal crops production particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. We have demonstrated that Am-ZIF-8 shows a better performance than C-ZIF-8 in inhibiting Striga seeds germination. This efficient performance of Am-ZIF-8 materials can be attributed to the incomplete deprotonation of 2 methylimidazole (2MIM) during amorphization, leading to the presence of unsaturated Zn−N coordination with the uncoordinated -NH groups available to undergo hydrogen bonding with the strigolactone analog GR24 forming a more stable Am-ZIF-8⋅⋅⋅GR24 hydrogen bonded network. We further established that application of ZIF-8 materials generally has no adverse effects on the growth and quality of rice crops.