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Abstract
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Plants are inevitably exposed to drought stress limiting their growth and causing yield loss, thus inciting food crises across the world. Nanoparticles (NPs) are regarded as effective and promising tools to overcome current and future constraints in sustainable agricultural production by improving plant tolerance mechanisms under abiotic stress conditions, including drought. However, further research is needed to fully understand and optimize their efficacy in improving the performance of medicinal plants under drought conditions. This study, conducted as a factorial experiment in a completely randomized design at Maragheh University, East Azerbaijan, Iran, in 2022, aimed to assess the impact of titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2NPs) on chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla L.) under drought stress conditions. The experiment encompassed twelve treatments with four replications, incorporating three irrigation levels (90%, 60%, and 30% field capacity) and four TiO2NPs concentrations (0, 50, 100, and 200 mg L-1). Results indicated that TiO2NPs significantly influenced plant responses under different stress conditions. Notably, the application of 100 mg L-1 TiO2NPs reported enhanced chlorophyll levels under non-stress conditions, while carotenoid content and enzyme activity increased under mild stress. Conversely, under severe stress conditions, elevated levels of hydrogen peroxide were observed when no fertilizer was applied. Furthermore, TiO2NPs exhibited potential in improving dry matter yield, with the highest performance observed. Overall, TiO2NPs, particularly at a concentration of 100 mg L-1, enhanced drought tolerance, ultimately increasing biomass production even under water-limited conditions. This research underscores the promising role of TiO2NPs in enhancing plant resilience to drought stress and their potential implications for sustainable agricultural practices.
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