Diel trends in stomatal response to ozone and water deficit: a unique relationship of midday values to growth and allometry in Pima cotton?

Ozone uptake at night is more damaging to plants than equivalent day-time flux

MAIN CONCLUSION

Plants exposed to equivalent ozone fluxes administered during day-time versus night-time exhibited greater losses in biomass at night and this finding is attributed to night-time depletion of cell wall-localised ascorbate. The present study employed Lactuca sativa and its closest wild relative, L. serriola, to explore the relative sensitivity of plants to ozone-induced oxidative stress during day-time versus night-time. By controlling atmospheric ozone concentration and measuring stomatal conductance, equivalent ozone uptake into leaves was engineered during day and night, and consequences on productivity and net CO2 assimilation rate were determined. Biomass losses attributable to ozone were significantly greater when an equivalent dose of ozone was taken-up by foliage at night compared to the day. Linkages between ozone impacts and ascorbic acid (AA) content, redox status and cellular compartmentation were probed in both species. Leaf AA pools were depleted by exposure of plants to darkness, and then AA levels in the apoplast and symplast were monitored on subsequent transfer of plants to the light. Apoplast AA appeared to be more affected by light-dark transition than the symplast pool. Moreover, equivalent ozone fluxes administered to leaves with contrasting AA levels resulted in contrasting effects on the light-saturated rate of CO2 assimilation (Asat) in both species. Once apoplast AA content recovered to pre-treatment levels, the same ozone flux resulted in no impacts on Asat. The results of the present investigation reveal that plants are significantly more sensitive to equivalent ozone fluxes taken-up at night compared with those during the day and were consistent with diel shifts in apoplast AA content and/or redox status. Furthermore, findings suggest that some thought should be given to weighing regional models of ozone impacts for extraordinary night-time ozone impacts.

Another choice for measuring tree photosynthesis in vitro

BACKGROUND

In the case of tall trees in the field or in rugged terrain where an instrument cannot be placed operationally, beveling is a popular method used to measure in vitro photosynthesis. However, some studies and our own research have shown that net photosynthesis values measured in vitro are generally significantly lower than values measured in situ.

METHODS

To develop a more accurate and applicable method for in vitro determination of photosynthesis, we evaluated five different methods for preparing detached tree branches to measure photosynthesis and gas exchange in vitro (beveling, cracking, splitting, girdling, and immersion in salicylic acid solution). Ten common tree-species were used.

RESULTS

By comparing light response curves and water-status data, we found that (1) it is possible, to some extent, to substitute in vitro measurement of photosynthetic characteristics of tree species for in situ measurement, provided a suitable treatment is employed; (2) the beveling method is likely to underestimate photosynthetic potential of some trees; (3) after cracking application, most detached branches effectively continued to absorb water; and (4) measurements obtained using detached tree-branches processed by the cracking method were closer to those obtained in situ in intact trees; (5) some tree species (Diospyros kaki, Eriobotrya japonica) appeared to be particularly sensitive to the cracking method, and their in-vitro maximum net photosynthesis rate (P max) was significantly less than the in-situ value (P < 0.05).

DISCUSSION

Our findings provide a methodological support for comprehensive and accurate measurement of plant functional traits. The use of the cracking method contributes to feasibility and reliability of the measurement of photosynthetic parameters in tall trees, thus providing more accurate photosynthetic parameters for the analysis of trade-off strategies at the leaf level.

Elevated ozone concentration decreases whole-plant hydraulic conductance and disturbs water use regulation in soybean plants

Elevated tropospheric ozone (O3 ) concentration has been shown to affect many aspects of plant performance including detrimental effects on leaf photosynthesis and plant growth. However, it is not known whether such changes are accompanied by concomitant responses in plant hydraulic architecture and water relations, which would have great implications for plant growth and survival in face of unfavorable water conditions. A soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) cultivar commonly used in Northeast China was exposed to non-filtered air (NF, averaged 24.0 nl l-1 ) and elevated O3 concentrations (eO3 , 40 nl l-1 supplied with NF air) in six open-top chambers for 50 days. The eO3 treatment resulted in a significant decrease in whole-plant hydraulic conductance that is mainly attributable to the reduced hydraulic conductance of the root system and the leaflets, while stem and leaf petiole hydraulic conductance showed no significant response to eO3 . Stomatal conductance of plants grown under eO3 was lower during mid-morning but significantly higher at midday, which resulted in substantially more negative daily minimum water potentials. Moreover, excised leaves from the eO3 treated plants showed significantly higher rates of water loss, suggesting a lower ability to withhold water when water supply is impeded. Our results indicate that, besides the direct detrimental effects of eO3 on photosynthetic carbon assimilation, its influences on hydraulic architecture and water relations may also negatively affect O3 -sensitive crops by deteriorating the detrimental effects of unfavorable water conditions.