{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,16]],"date-time":"2026-07-16T04:31:13Z","timestamp":1784176273768,"version":"3.55.0"},"reference-count":40,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"15","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,27]],"date-time":"2025-07-27T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1753574400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF)","award":["2021R1A6A1A03038785"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2021R1A6A1A03038785"]}]},{"name":"Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF)","award":["LP005296022025"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["LP005296022025"]}]},{"name":"collaborative research project of the Jeonbuk Provincial Agricultural Research and Extension Services, titled Development of Plasma-Based Circulating Nutrient Solution Sterilization Technology for Paprika","award":["2021R1A6A1A03038785"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2021R1A6A1A03038785"]}]},{"name":"collaborative research project of the Jeonbuk Provincial Agricultural Research and Extension Services, titled Development of Plasma-Based Circulating Nutrient Solution Sterilization Technology for Paprika","award":["LP005296022025"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["LP005296022025"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["IJMS"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Seed germination and early seedling growth are pivotal stages that define crop establishment and yield potential. Conventional agrochemicals used to improve these processes often raise environmental concerns, highlighting the need for sustainable alternatives. In this study, we demonstrated that water treated with cylindrical dielectric barrier discharge (c-DBD) plasma, enriched with nitric oxide (NO) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS), markedly enhanced onion (Allium cepa) seed germination and seedling vigor. The plasma-treated water (PTW) promoted rapid imbibition, broke dormancy, and accelerated germination rates beyond 98%. Seedlings irrigated with PTW exhibited significantly increased biomass, root and shoot length, chlorophyll content, and antioxidant enzyme activities, accompanied by reduced lipid peroxidation. Transcriptomic profiling revealed that PTW orchestrated a multifaceted regulatory network by upregulating gibberellin biosynthesis genes (GA3OX1\/2), suppressing abscisic acid signaling components (ABI5), and activating phenylpropanoid metabolic pathways (PAL, 4CL) and antioxidant defense genes (RBOH1, SOD). These molecular changes coincided with elevated NO2\u2212 and NO3\u2212 levels and finely tuned hydrogen peroxide dynamics, underpinning redox signaling crucial for seed activation and stress resilience. Our findings establish plasma-generated NO-enriched water as an innovative, eco-friendly technology that leverages redox and hormone crosstalk to stimulate germination and early growth, offering promising applications in sustainable agriculture.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ijms26157256","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,28]],"date-time":"2025-07-28T10:51:14Z","timestamp":1753699874000},"page":"7256","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":3,"title":["Investigating Seed Germination, Seedling Growth, and Enzymatic Activity in Onion (Allium cepa) Under the Influence of Plasma-Treated Water"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"26","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0007-2399-1088","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sabnaj","family":"Khanam","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Plasma Bio-Display, Kwangwoon University, Seoul 01897, Republic of Korea"},{"name":"Department of Electrical and Biological Physics, Kwangwoon University, Seoul 01897, Republic of Korea"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Young June","family":"Hong","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Advanced Technology Research Institute, Nayuda Co., Seoul 04067, Republic of Korea"},{"name":"Dasanje 301, Kwangwoon ro 20, Nowongu, Seoul 01890, Republic of Korea"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5385-1878","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Eun Ha","family":"Choi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Plasma Bio-Display, Kwangwoon University, Seoul 01897, Republic of Korea"},{"name":"Department of Electrical and Biological Physics, Kwangwoon University, Seoul 01897, Republic of Korea"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1372-7319","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ihn","family":"Han","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Plasma Bio-Display, Kwangwoon University, Seoul 01897, Republic of Korea"},{"name":"Department of Electrical and Biological Physics, Kwangwoon University, Seoul 01897, Republic of Korea"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,27]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","first-page":"190","article-title":"Cross-Country Analysis of Onion Trade in EU and Balkan Countries","volume":"42","author":"Gyarmati","year":"2023","journal-title":"J. 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