Abstract

Nanotechnology stands as a formidable weapon against several plant diseases that cause huge losses in its production. Nanoparticles provide a novel opportunity to mitigate the challenges in plant disease management. Fusarium wilt is the most common and destructive disease of many economically important crops including cucurbits. Fusarium wilt disease not only hampers the production of the crop but also affects the quality of cucurbit fruits widely. The wilt pathogen, Fusarium oxysporum has the ability to survive in the soil for a long period of about 10-15 years, and hence it is regarded as the most damaging soil-borne fungus. The use of nanoparticles in agriculture is helpful for reducing the input of chemical pesticides as well as fertilizers, which in turn reduces the chemical load on the ecosystem. It will also help in promoting plant growth and increase crop production to contribute to meeting growing global needs. They may be used efficiently as biomarkers for the detection of important plant diseases. Nowadays, metal and metal oxide nanoparticles of zinc, silver, gold, titanium, copper, etc., have been proven to inhibit fungal, bacterial, and viral plant pathogens. In recent years, great attention has been focused on the green synthesis of nanoparticles from plants as it helps in the formation of nanoparticles that are environmentally friendly, stable, biocompatible, and cost-effective. Keeping in view their efficiency, zinc oxide nanoparticles have been synthesized through green synthesis from mung bean plants, and then the efficacy of these zinc oxide nanoparticles was checked at different concentrations against Fusarium oxysporum, causing Fusarium wilt of cucurbits. Zinc oxide nanoparticles were found to be very effective against Fusarium oxysporum, and they inhibit the pathogen, which proved their potential in the management of this destructive pathogen, causing Fusarium wilt of cucurbits. Since these nanoparticles were synthesized through green synthesis, hence they were environmentally friendly also.