Plasma treatment of plants: puzzle games for biologists and physicists

Abstract

Recent scientific, technological and methodological advances in the fields of plasma physics and plant physiology offer a wide range of possibilities for employment of plasma technology in treatment of plants. Application of PAW or direct plasma treatment represent an alternative and valuable approach to plant biotechnology being chemically-free, energy efficient, and environmentally friendly. However, the distinct mechanisms responsible for the positive effects of plasma treatment on plant cells are still vague. Plant calli cultures (calli grown aseptically on semisolid agar medium) and calli suspension cultures (calli grown aseptically in liquid medium in test tubes, shake flasks, or bioreactors) with or without addition of plant growth regulators are used to illustrate changes in physiological response of plant cells/tissues induced by plasma treatment. Key challenges and obstacles to achieve precise and localized in vivo treatments of living cells and tissues will be discussed in light of current knowledge in the field.