Nitrogen-doped carbon dots amplify growth-promoting effects in Arabidopsis thaliana via a "Maternal Stress-Progeny Benefit" indirect regulation mode.

Addressing the high cost, large dosage, heavy metal risks of traditional nanomaterials, and public concerns over transgenic breeding, this work used metal-free nitrogen-doped carbon dots (CNDs) as a stress inducer in Arabidopsis thaliana (A. thaliana) to validate the "Maternal Stress-Progeny Benefit" strategy for adaptive memory seed breeding. Results showed that CND exposure in maternal (F1) plants significantly activated superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), and catalase (CAT) to scavenge reactive oxygen species (ROS). CNDs were absorbed by roots and inherited in F2 seeds, establishing heritable adaptive memory. F2 plants exhibited 67.0%-200% higher aboveground biomass within 5-30 days, 22.0% higher silique fresh weight, and 38.7% higher dry weight. Chlorophyll content and photosynthetic rate rose by 98.5% and 100%, respectively, with greatly improved salt tolerance. Transcriptomics revealed 1024 differentially expressed genes enriched in hormone pathways, including upregulated YUC2/6/8/9, A-ARR/B-ARR, CYP90C1/D1, CYP85A1/A2, and PYR/PYL, and downregulated PP2C and MAPKKK17/18. Metabolomics highlighted enhanced L-aspartic acid metabolism (up 29.7%) coupled with nucleotide and phospholipid pathways. Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and enzyme assays verified that CNDs show photocatalytic and peroxidase-like activities, triggering moderate ROS to prime stress memory and balance growth and resistance. This transgenerational strategy lowers CND dosage, avoids heavy metal and transgenic issues, and provides a green non-transgenic breeding paradigm for crop yield and stress resilience improvement.