Electrospun α-Terthienyl Nanofibres as a Sustainable Alternative to ChemicalNematicides: Controlled Release, Eco-Safety, and Enhanced Plant Protection

Electrospun α-Terthienyl Nanofibres as a Sustainable Alternative to ChemicalNematicides: Controlled Release, Eco-Safety, and Enhanced Plant Protection | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Electrospun α-Terthienyl Nanofibres as a Sustainable Alternative to ChemicalNematicides: Controlled Release, Eco-Safety, and Enhanced Plant Protection P. G Kavitha, Ajmal Haris Kareem, K. Devrajan, N. Saranya, P. Vetrivelkalai, and 2 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7789603/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Plant-parasitic nematodes, particularly Meloidogyne incognita , cause severe yield losses in vegetables and field crops, with global damage estimated at $ 173 billion annually. Conventional chemical nematicides, though effective, face increasing restrictions due to their ecological risks, necessitating safer, sustainable alternatives. The present study explores an innovative nanotechnology-based strategy using electrospun polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) nanofibres infused with α-terthienyl (α-T), a potent nematicidal compound derived from Tagetes spp. Nanofibre mats were fabricated via electrospinning, characterized by SEM, TEM, FTIR, and UV-Vis spectroscopy, confirming successful α-T incorporation and structural stability. In vitro assays revealed significant inhibition of egg hatching (76.7% at 10 ppm) and juvenile mortality (81.7% at 10 ppm), establishing this concentration as optimal. Release kinetics demonstrated sustained degradation of nanofibres, with 78.1% weight loss over 120 days, ensuring gradual α-T delivery. Hydrolytic studies further confirmed matrix integrity and controlled release properties. Biosafety assessments on Eudrilus eugeniae showed no adverse effects on survival or reproduction, validating eco-safety. Molecular docking revealed strong binding of α-T with nematode proteins, particularly cytochrome c oxidase (–7.2 kcal/mol), indicating disruption of mitochondrial respiration as a potential mode of action. Furthermore, seed encapsulation trials on bhendi ( Abelmoschus esculentus ) demonstrated uniform nanofibre coating, improved germination (78%), enhanced seedling vigor, and effective suppression of root-knot nematodes under pot culture conditions, outperforming conventional carbofuran treatment. These findings highlight α-T infused nanofibres as a promising eco-friendly technology for integrated nematode management, offering sustained release, enhanced plant vigor, and environmental safety. α-terthienyl Electrospun nanofibres Root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita) Sustained release Seed encapsulation Biosafety Eco-friendly nematode management Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files Tables.docx Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7789603","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":537104431,"identity":"ae4b6f5c-c709-4fe6-bdb0-bbd67afbd112","order_by":0,"name":"P. 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Protection","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"α-terthienyl, Electrospun nanofibres, Root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita), Sustained release, Seed encapsulation, Biosafety, Eco-friendly nematode management","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7789603/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7789603/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003ePlant-parasitic nematodes, particularly \u003cem\u003eMeloidogyne incognita\u003c/em\u003e, cause severe yield losses in vegetables and field crops, with global damage estimated at \u003cspan\u003e$\u003c/span\u003e173\u0026nbsp;billion annually. Conventional chemical nematicides, though effective, face increasing restrictions due to their ecological risks, necessitating safer, sustainable alternatives. The present study explores an innovative nanotechnology-based strategy using electrospun polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) nanofibres infused with α-terthienyl (α-T), a potent nematicidal compound derived from \u003cem\u003eTagetes\u003c/em\u003e spp. Nanofibre mats were fabricated via electrospinning, characterized by SEM, TEM, FTIR, and UV-Vis spectroscopy, confirming successful α-T incorporation and structural stability. In vitro assays revealed significant inhibition of egg hatching (76.7% at 10 ppm) and juvenile mortality (81.7% at 10 ppm), establishing this concentration as optimal. Release kinetics demonstrated sustained degradation of nanofibres, with 78.1% weight loss over 120 days, ensuring gradual α-T delivery. Hydrolytic studies further confirmed matrix integrity and controlled release properties. Biosafety assessments on \u003cem\u003eEudrilus eugeniae\u003c/em\u003e showed no adverse effects on survival or reproduction, validating eco-safety. Molecular docking revealed strong binding of α-T with nematode proteins, particularly cytochrome c oxidase (\u0026ndash;7.2 kcal/mol), indicating disruption of mitochondrial respiration as a potential mode of action. Furthermore, seed encapsulation trials on bhendi (\u003cem\u003eAbelmoschus esculentus\u003c/em\u003e) demonstrated uniform nanofibre coating, improved germination (78%), enhanced seedling vigor, and effective suppression of root-knot nematodes under pot culture conditions, outperforming conventional carbofuran treatment. These findings highlight α-T infused nanofibres as a promising eco-friendly technology for integrated nematode management, offering sustained release, enhanced plant vigor, and environmental safety.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Electrospun α-Terthienyl Nanofibres as a Sustainable Alternative to ChemicalNematicides: Controlled Release, Eco-Safety, and Enhanced Plant Protection","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-11-06 10:07:35","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7789603/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"90df6d7a-4a51-4c10-9859-8ae58726b632","owner":[],"postedDate":"November 6th, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-02-12T12:11:55+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2025-11-06 10:07:35","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-7789603","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-7789603","identity":"rs-7789603","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}