ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Sustainable and Intelligent Phytoprotection
Evaluation of soybean sprouting growth vigor based on ZnONPs
feng pan 1
Qianyun Li 2
silin cao 1
Xiuqing Fu 2
1. Xinjiang Academy of Agricultural and Reclamation Science, Shihezi, China
2. Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, China
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Abstract
Nanoparticle-induced treatments can promote seed germination, thereby improving germination potential under environmental stresses such as drought and salinity. This study aimed to investigate the effects of Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs) on soybean seed germination and to develop a precise evaluation method. For this purpose, we developed a full-time sequence crop growth vitality monitoring system. Using germination rate and root length as the primary evaluation indicators, we conducted full-time sequence germination vitality monitoring experiments on soybean seeds treated with ZnONPs. A dataset was constructed by collecting images that documented the growth evolution of embryonic roots. The developed detection model was then used to evaluate the accuracy of image detection during germination. Germination index and embryonic root length were also calculated. At a concentration of 600 mg/L ZnONPs dispersion, soybean seeds showed the highest germination rate—an increase of 28, and the longest radicle length—an increase of 42%. Further germination tests were performed on seeds exposed to 600 mg/L ZnONPs dispersion, followed by treatment with different concentrations of NaCl and PEG6000 solutions. We then examined morphological and physiological changes in ZnONPs-treated soybean seeds under salt and drought stress, establishing a preliminary foundation for evaluating crop and variety vitality. The results indicate that, compared with deionized water, the 600 mg/L ZnONPs dispersion accelerated initial germination time, increased germination rate, and enhanced radicle length under low-concentration stress. At certain concentrations, ZnONPs dispersion positively influenced soybean seed germination under varying salinity and drought conditions. These findings provide new insights that may contribute to improving soybean germination under simulated stress conditions, serving as a preliminary theoretical reference for potential applications in arid and saline environments.
Summary
Keywords
Collection system, Germination vigor assessment, Soybean seed germination, YOLOv8-SEG improvement, ZnO nanoparticles
Received
14 November 2025
Accepted
20 February 2026
Copyright
© 2026 pan, Li, cao and Fu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
*Correspondence: silin cao; Xiuqing Fu
Disclaimer
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.