Nuclear techniques helpful in study of zinc fertilisers applied to the leaves of broadacre crops

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Researchers from the Future Industries Institute at the University of South Australia are collaborating with a group of scientists at ANSTO to investigate a new class of micro and nano-scale zinc fertilisers for broadacre crops, such as wheat.

Zinc is an essential micronutrient required for the growth of wheat with crucial roles throughout the plant but Australian agricultural soils are known to be deficient in zinc and other micronutrients.

Dr Casey Doolette and PhD candidate Thea Lund Read (pictured above right) from Prof Enzo Lombi’s lab are assessing if nano and micro zinc particles applied to leaves (known as foliar fertilisers) provide a more sustained supply of zinc to crops than dissolved forms of the metal. They are also evaluating two commonly used agricultural formulations, soluble zinc and chelated zinc (Zn-EDTA).

In order to make this evaluation, they needed to use a combination of tools to understand zinc transport and bioaccumulation. One technique, based on the use of radiotracers to track the distribution of elements, was of particular interest and available at ANSTO.

ANSTO Environmental Research scientist Dr Tom Cresswell has expertise in the use of radioactive isotopes as tracers in marine organisms to study the bioaccumulation of specific elements. "It is slightly different working with plants but the concept is essentially the same. By using zinc-65 as a radiotracer, it is possible to detect exactly where the zinc goes after it has been absorbed by the plant," said Cresswell.

ANSTO Biologist Nicholas Howell has captured a series of autoradiographic images of the plants that show the change in distribution of radioactive zinc, in live leaves, over time.

To read more please visit:

http://www.ansto.gov.au/AboutANSTO/MediaCentre/News/ACS180115

Source: ANSTO