Nitric oxide (NO) is a multifunctional gaseous signal that modulates the growth, development and stress tolerance of higher plants. NO donors have been used to boost plant endogenous NO levels and to activate NO-related responses, but this strategy is often hindered by the relative instability of donors. Alternatively, nanoscience offers a new, promising way to enhance NO delivery to plants, as NO-releasing nanomaterials (e.g. S-nitrosothiol-containing chitosan nanoparticles) have many beneficial physicochemical and biochemical properties compared to non-encapsulated NO donors. Nano NO donors are effective in increasing tissue NO levels and enhancing NO effects both in animal and human systems. The authors believe, and would like to emphasize, that new trends and technologies are essential for advancing plant NO research and nanotechnology may represent a breakthrough in traditional agriculture and environmental science. Herein, we aim to draw the attention of the scientific community to the potential of NO-releasing nanomaterials in both basic and applied plant research as alternatives to conventional NO donors, providing a brief overview of the current knowledge and identifying future research directions. We also express our opinion about the challenges for the application of nano NO donors, such as the environmental footprint and stakeholder's acceptance of these materials.

Agroécologie CNRS INRA Institut Agro Dijon Univ Bourgogne Franche Comté Dijon 21000 France

Center of Natural and Human Sciences Federal University of ABC Santo André SP 09210 580 Brazil

Department of Animal and Plant Biology State University of Londrina Londrina PR 86057 970 Brazil

Department of Applied Sciences University of the West of England Bristol BS16 1QY UK

Department of Plant Biology University of Szeged Szeged 6726 Hungary

Faculty of Science Department of Biochemistry Palacký University Šlechtitelů 27 Olomouc CZ 783 71 Czech Republic

Group of Antioxidants Free Radicals and Nitric Oxide in Biotechnology Food and Agriculture Department of Biochemistry and Cell and Molecular Biology of Plants Estación Experimental del Zaidín Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas Profesor Albareda 1 Granada 18008 Spain

Group of Biochemistry and Cell Signaling in Nitric Oxide Center for Advanced Studies in Olive Grove and Olive Oils Faculty of Experimental Sciences Department of Experimental Biology Campus Universitario 'Las Lagunillas' s n University of Jaén Jaén 23071 Spain

Institute of Biochemical Plant Pathology Helmholtz Zentrum München German Research Center for Environmental Health München Neuherberg 85764 Germany

Institute of Molecular Plant Sciences University of Edinburgh Edinburgh EH9 3JH UK

Laboratory of Crop Physiology Department of Plant Biology Institute of Biology University of Campinas Campinas SP 13083 970 Brazil

Laboratory of Plant Physiology 'Coaracy M Franco' Center R and D in Ecophysiology and Biophysics Agronomic Institute Campinas SP 13075 630 Brazil

National Institute of Plant Genome Research Aruna Asaf Ali Marg New Delhi 110067 India

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Progress in Plant Nitric Oxide Studies: Implications for Phytopathology and Plant Protection