Nanotechnology in Agriculture

Definition: Nanotechnology is science, engineering, and technology conducted at the nanoscale, which is about 1 to 100 nanometers. Nanotechnology is the study and application of extremely small things and can be used across all the other science fields, such as chemistry, biology, physics, materials science, and engineering.

How small is Nano - small?

Compared to Human Hair

A Human Hair is about 100,000m wide

Physicist Richard Feynman, The father of nanotechnology.

Application of Nanotechnology is more wider at present daily science these are important applications: Nano Biology, Nano Medicine, Nanotechnology and Ecology, Nanotechnology in Agriculture, Nanotechnology and Use of Natural Resources, Nanoweapons, Nanotechnology in space science: Nanotechnology in Agriculture: With nanotechnology, growing food crops to feed the hungry and starving would no longer be a problem. Higher crop yields could be achieved by intensive green house agriculture. Plants grown in controlled environments (with optimal temperature, CO2, water, nutrients, etc) can grow year round and produce an order of magnitude more food per acre than existing methods. "Agriculture will increasingly provide the raw materials and energy needed to drive our transition to a sustainable world!" "Nanotechnology is also an important enabling technology that has the potential of accelerating our transition to sustainable bio-based industries!"

Nanotechnology in Agriculture Applications:

Nanoscience, nanoengineering, nanotechnology all will have massive impact on the ultimate success of the evolving global industries of agriculture and food, over the long term. Providing enabling instrumentation for global surveillance systems, and computer modelling predictions for climate change, land use, water resources, market projections, population movements and ecosystem changes. Providing advanced instrumentation for precise, specific, sensitive, cheap, fast analysis of the physical/chemical constituents, functional performance, and potential toxicity of food products, food packaging and handling materials, water, air, bio-mass, fertilizers, pesticides, soils, and assessing environmental impacts. Enabling fundamental research and invention, aimed to create new fabrication processes, and 'smart' materials that can improve the economics and productivity of agriculture and contribute to human nutrition.
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Importance of Nanotechnology in Agriculture:

1. Agriculture is the backbone of the developing countries, with more than 60% of their population relying for their livelihood on this sector. 2. The intense problems confronting productivity in agriculture, such as several abiotic and biotic stress factors, require more precise and effective solutions; and products with higher efficacy are further required to mitigate the stress. 3. Nanotechnology can improve our understanding and also deliver better products. It can contribute to the development of improved systems for monitoring environmental conditions and delivering nutrients or appropriate pesticides and thus potentially enhance yields or nutritional values. 4. Nanotechnology is considered to play a significant role in major advances within the Agriculture, Energy, Technology and Medical sectors in the 21st century. 5. A UN survey on potential applications of nanotechnology in developing countries identified agriculture productivity enhancement as the second most critical area of application for attaining the Millenium Development Goals of eradicating hunger and malnutrition. 6. For India it is also important that investments in nanotechnology are made to ensure that the National Agricultural Research System remains globally. This argument suggests the imaginary of development and fear of lagging behind or being dominated by international forces. 7. The applications of nanotechnology are not only limited to farm production level, but be extended across all links of the agricultural value chain to increase agricultural productivities, product qualities, consumer acceptance and resource use efficiencies 8. Thus, nanotechnology can be an important part of the future agriculture, food systems and industry. Training and research in nanotechnology, therefore, have very high relevance and importance.

Nanotechnology for Crop Biotechnology

Chemists have successfully crafted three-dimensional molecular structures, a breakthrough that unites biotechnology and nanotechnology. They made DNA crystals by producing synthetic DNA sequences that can self-assemble into a series of three-dimensional triangle-like patterns. The DNA crystals have sticky-ends or small cohesive sequences that can attach to another molecule in an organized fashion. When multiple helices are attached through single-stranded sticky ends, there would be a lattice-like structure that extends in six different directions, forming a threedimensional crystal. This technique could be applied in improving important crops by organizing and linking carbohydrates, lipids, proteins and nucleic acids to these crystals.

Nanocapsules can enable effective penetration of herbicides through cuticles and tissues, allowing slow and constant release of the active substances. 3-nm Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticle (MSN) in delivering DNA and chemicals into isolated plant cells. MSNs are chemically coated and serve as containers for the genes delivered into the plants. The coating triggers the plant to take the particles through the cell walls, where the genes are inserted and activated in a precise and controlled manner, without any toxic side or after effects. This technique has been applied to introduce DNA successfully to tobacco and corn plants.

Nanoparticles and Recycling Agricultural Waste

Nanotechnology is also applied to prevent waste in agriculture, particularly in the cotton industry. When cotton is processed into fabric or garment, some of the cellulose or the fibers are discarded as waste or used for low-value products such as cotton balls, yarns and cotton batting. With the use of newly-developed solvents and a technique called electro spinning, scientists produce 100 nanometer-diameter fibers that can be used as a fertilizer or pesticide absorbent. Ethanol production from maize feed stocks has increased the global price of maize in the past two years. Cellulosic feedstocks are now regarded as a viable option for biofuels production and nanotechnology can also enhance the performance of enzymes used in the conversion of cellulose into ethanol. Scientists are working on nano-engineered enzymes that will allow simple and cost-effective conversion of cellulose from waste plant parts into ethanol. Rice husk, a rice-milling by product can be used as a source of renewable energy. When rice husk is burned into thermal energy or bio fuel, a large amount of highquality nanosilica is produced which can be further utilized in making other materials such as glass and concrete. Since there is a continuous source of rice husk, mass production of nanosilica through nanotechnology can alleviate the growing rice husk disposal concern.

"Nanosensors dispersed in the field can also detect the presence of plant viruses and the level of soil nutrients". "Nanoencapsulated slow release fertilizers have also become a trend to save fertilizer consumption and to minimize environmental pollution". Nanobarcodes and Nanoprocessing could also be used to monitor the quality of agricultural produce. Scientists at Cornell University used the concept of grocery barcodes for cheap, efficient, rapid and easy decoding and detection of diseases.

They produced microscopic probes or nanobarcodes that could tag multiple pathogens in a farm which can easily be detected using any fluorescent-based equipment. This on-going project generally aims to develop a portable on- site detector which can be used by non-trained individuals. The project, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture is expected to be completed towards the end of 2011.

The Impact of Nanotechnology

Nanotechnology is considered as one of the possible solutions to problems in food and agriculture. Just like biotechnology, issues of safety on health, biodiversity, and environment along with appropriate regulation are raised on nanotechnology. However, nanotechnology products such as anti-bacterial dressings, stainresistant fabrics, and suntan lotions have long been commercially available. The impact of nanotechnology on health, wealth, and lives of the people will be at least equal to the combined influences of microelectronics, medical imaging, computer-aided engineering and man-made polymers developed in the 20th century.

"Nano-fertilizers often contain nutrients/growth promoters encapsulated in nanoscale polymers, chelates, or emulsions" Slow, targeted, efficient release becomes possible. In some cases, the nanoparticle itself can stimulate growth

"Nanosensors can be used to detect pathogens, as well as monitor local, micro,and nanoconditions in the field (temperature, water availability, humidity, nutrient status, pesticide levels)" "Nano-pesticides often follow a similar model to nano-fertilizers; active pesticidal (insecticide, fungicide,) ingredient associated with or within a nanoscale product or carrier". Increased stability/solubility, slow release, increased uptake/translocation, and in some cases, targeted delivery (analogous to nano-based delivery in human disease research) Can result in lower required amounts of active ingredients" "Nano-emulsions can be used to contain pesticides and release them in a controlled fashion, ensuring that they reach the intended destination and limiting their environmental impact."

Important Points to Remember

Nanotechnology clearly has the potential to dramatically impact and improve agriculture. However, the current degree of understanding of nanomaterial fate and effects in agricultural systems is poor.
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It is possible that engineered nanomaterials may represent an emerging class of contaminants. Exposure on agricultural crops may occur directly through NM- containing pesticide/fertilizer formulations, as well as spills, or indirectly through the application of NM-containing bio solids. Lots of particle size-specific toxicity; not really supposed to happen. Very little known in the area of co-contaminant interactions but it appears that some nanoparticles may significantly alter co-contaminant fate. Soil may minimize many of these co-contaminant interactions; more work currently being done here. Nanotechnology could reduce acidic nature of the soil and attract earth warms to regain its fertility.

Nanobiotechnology
Nanobiotechnology has the potential to increase the efficiency and quality of agricultural production and food storage, to enhance the safety of food supplies for the protection of consumers and producers and to introduce new functionality (value added products) for food, fiber and agricultural commodities. Nanobiotechnology will pave ways for new researchable areas and applications such as DNA chip, protein identification and manipulation, novel nucleic acid engineering based films, smart delivery of DNA using gold nanoparticles. Biological tests measuring the presence or activity of selelcted substances become quicker, more sensitive and more flexible when nano-particles are put to work as tags or labels. Magnetic nanoparticles, bound to suitable antibody, are used to label specific molecules, structures or microorganisms. For example, gold nanoparticles tagged with short segments of DNA can be used for detection of sequence in a sample. Multicolor optical coding for biological assay has been achieved by embedding different sized quantum dots into polymeric microbeads. Nanopore technology for analysis of nucleic acids converts strings of nucleotides directly into electronic signatures.

Nanotechnology for environmental safety

One of the major constraints in Indian agriculture is irrigation water and the availability is shrinking alarmingly. It has been estimated that the per capita availability of water has reduced nearly 50% in the past 40 years. This necessitates for remediation of contaminated waters and to use them for agriculture besides domestic purposes. Nanotechnology is a powerful tool to remediate aquatic and soil pollutants.

The scientists of Banaras Hindu University in India have devised a simple method to produce carbon nanotube fillters that efficiently remove micro to nano-scale contaminants from water and heavy hydrocarbons from petroleum. Magnetic nanoparticles offer an effective and reliable method to remove heavy metal contaminations from waste water by making use of magnetic separation technique. Nanotechnolgy can introduce new methods for the treatments and purficiation of water from pollutants, as well as new techniques for wastewater management and water desalinization. In TNAU, efforts are being undertaken to use FeO(Iron Oxide) nanoparticle to decontaminate soil and aquatic systems.

Scope of Nanotechnology in Indian Agriculture

"The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), New Delhi, has opened up an exclusive platform on Applications of Nanotechnology in Agriculture to be introduced in the current 12th five year plan (2012-2017)". The platform encompasses five major theme areas namely, nano based diagnostic kits for the detection of diseases, pests and nutrient deficiencies, nanopheromones for effective pest control, nano-agri inputs (fertilizers, herbicides, insecticides, growth hormones etc.,) for enhanced use efficiency, nano-food systems (nano-packaging and encapsulation of functional foods) and biosafety and risk assessment with a budget outlay of Rs. 300 crores (60 million USD). This is one of the major initiatives of Government of India to augment nanotechnology research in the sphere of agricultural sciences. Nano-agriculture is at the nascent stage and the agricultural scientists, students and development officials have to be exposed through periodical training in the field of nano science and technology. The SAU / ICAR institutes that have some expertise may take a lead role in offering training. Indeed, ICAR has given a task to CAZRI and TNAU to give training to scientists through NAIP Program. The nanotechnology research and development activities require sophisticated equipment facility and thus ICAR bestowed interest to initiate a network of three national level nodal centers in order to cater to the needs and requirements of the scientists involved in nanotechnology research. In addition to the infrastructure, at least five faculties from basic sciences such as Physics, Chemistry, Nanotechnology, Nanobiotechnology and Electronics are required to gain insights into the exciting field besides transforming the processes into products quickly that flow into Indian agriculture. Further, for the better function and upkeep of the laboratories at least 5 technicians are utmost essential.