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Plants
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Bio-Based Solutions for Sustainable Plant Systems
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Bio-Based Solutions for Sustainable Plant Systems

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Crop Physiology and Crop Production".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 October 2025 | Viewed by 921

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Riccardo Fedeli

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Life Sciences, University of Siena, 53100 Siena, Italy
Interests: bio-based product; wood distillate; biochar; crop production; secondary metabolites; sustainable agriculture
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Sustainable agriculture is fundamental in addressing global challenges such as climate change, food security, and environmental protection. This Special Issue explores bio-based solutions that enhance plant systems while reducing the environmental impact of agricultural practices. A major focus is on biostimulants, natural substances that stimulate plant growth, improve nutrient uptake, and increase resilience to stress. Their role in enhancing root development, crop productivity, and overall plant health is crucial for sustainable agriculture.

Specifically, wood distillates and essential oils are gaining interest for their ability to enhance crop yield and nutritional value, providing eco-friendly alternatives to synthetic agrochemicals. Another key topic is biochar, a carbon-rich material that improves soil fertility, water retention, and carbon sequestration, making it an essential tool for regenerative agriculture.

This Special Issue also explores green solutions for mitigating abiotic stress, such as drought, salinity, and temperature fluctuations, which significantly impact crop growth. In addition, it examines the effects of bio-based products on crop species as well as spontaneous species within agroecosystems, which may be affected during the application of these products.

By integrating these bio-based strategies, this Special Issue provides innovative insights into sustainable agriculture, eco-friendly plant protection, and improved crop resilience, fostering a transition toward a more environmentally conscious agricultural model.

Dr. Riccardo Fedeli
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Plants is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • biostimulant
  • wood distillate
  • biochar
  • essential oils
  • green solutions
  • sustainable agriculture
  • crop production
  • abiotic stress
  • spontaneous plants

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 1247 KiB  
Article
The Impact of Cd Pollution on Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungal Communities in Paddy Fields
by Wangbiao Xia, Yingchun Liao, Xinyi Chen, Liang Li, Yanning Shi, Yaxin Liu, Jingmin Zhang and Jiankang Fu
Plants 2025, 14(16), 2501; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14162501 - 12 Aug 2025
Viewed by 215
Abstract
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) demonstrate considerable potential for remediating soils contaminated with heavy metals. However, comprehensive research examining the effects of cadmium (Cd) contamination on AMF communities in paddy fields remains scarce, constraining their broader application in such environments. In this study, high-throughput [...] Read more.
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) demonstrate considerable potential for remediating soils contaminated with heavy metals. However, comprehensive research examining the effects of cadmium (Cd) contamination on AMF communities in paddy fields remains scarce, constraining their broader application in such environments. In this study, high-throughput sequencing was utilized to assess AMF community structure in paddy soils subjected to five distinct levels of Cd contamination. The study also explored the effect of different soil properties on AMF community dynamics. A total of 188 AMF taxa were identified across all soil samples, spanning four families. The Claroideoglomeraceae family emerged as the predominant group, exhibiting notable Cd tolerance. While elevated Cd concentrations inhibited the AMF community structure, lower concentrations increased the α-diversity of the community. Furthermore, soil-available phosphorus, calcium levels, and pH were found to be critical factors driving shifts in AMF community structure. Redundancy analysis explicitly quantified the relative strength of environmental factors, demonstrating that phosphorus and pH directly influenced the AMF community structure through significant effects, while Cd and calcium exerted their influence via indirect or nonlinear pathways. Given the relative abundance advantage of Claroideoglomeraceae in Cd-contaminated environments and its positive correlation with Cd concentration, we hypothesize that this group may exhibit Cd tolerance. Therefore, it could be considered a potential candidate species for prioritization in future field inoculation trials, and its practical application potential should be further validated. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bio-Based Solutions for Sustainable Plant Systems)
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18 pages, 1874 KiB  
Article
Soil Drenching with Wood Distillate Modifies the Nutritional Properties of Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) Seeds by Increasing the Protein Content and Inducing Targeted Changes in the Proteomic Profile
by Rossana De Salvo, Riccardo Fedeli, Alfonso Carleo, Luca Bini, Stefano Loppi and Laura Bianchi
Plants 2025, 14(13), 2046; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14132046 - 3 Jul 2025
Viewed by 506
Abstract
The production of food with a naturally enriched protein content is a strategic response to the growing global demand for sustainable protein sources. Wood distillate (WD), a by-product of the pyrolysis of woody biomass, has previously been shown to increase the protein concentration [...] Read more.
The production of food with a naturally enriched protein content is a strategic response to the growing global demand for sustainable protein sources. Wood distillate (WD), a by-product of the pyrolysis of woody biomass, has previously been shown to increase the protein concentration and bioavailability in chickpea seeds. Here, we evaluated the effect of 0.5% (v/v) WD soil drenching on chickpea productivity, nutritional profile, and proteomic pattern. WD treatment significantly improved the yield by increasing plant biomass (+144%), number of pods and seeds (+148% and +147%), and seed size (diameter: +6%; weight: +25%). Nutritional analyses revealed elevated levels of soluble proteins (+15%), starch (+11%), fructose (+135%), and polyphenols (+14%) and a greater antioxidant capacity (25%), alongside a reduction in glucose content, albeit not statistically significant, suggesting an unchanged or even lowered glycemic index. Although their concentration decreased, Ca (−31%), K (−12%), P (−5%), and Zn (−14%) in WD-treated plants remained within normal ranges. To preliminary assess the quality and safety of the protein enrichment, a differential proteomic analysis was performed on coarse flours from individual seeds. Despite the higher protein content, the overall protein profiles of the WD-treated seeds showed limited variation, with only a few storage proteins, identified as legumin and vicilin-like isoforms, being differentially abundant. These findings indicate a general protein concentration increase without a major alteration in the proteoform composition or differential protein synthesis. Overall, WD emerged as a promising and sustainable biostimulant for chickpea cultivation, capable of enhancing both yield and nutritional value, while maintaining the proteomic integrity and, bona fide, food safety. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bio-Based Solutions for Sustainable Plant Systems)
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