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Wang L, Arif M, Zheng J, Li C. Patterns and drivers of plant carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus stoichiometry in a novel riparian ecosystem. Front Plant Sci 2024; 15:1354222. [PMID: 38654903 PMCID: PMC11036011 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2024.1354222] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2023] [Accepted: 03/26/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
Carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) stoichiometry serve as valuable indices for plant nutrient utilization and biogeochemical cycling within ecosystems. However, the allocation of these nutrients among different plant organs and the underlying drivers in dynamic riparian ecosystems remain inadequately understood. In this study, we gathered plant samples from diverse life forms (annuals and perennials) and organs (leaves, stems, and roots) in the riparian zone of the Three Gorges Reservoir Region (TGRR) in China-a novel ecosystem subject to winter flooding. We used random forest analysis and structural equation modeling to find out how flooding, life forms, plant communities, and soil variables affect organs C, N, and P levels. Results showed that the mean concentrations of plant C, N, and P in the riparian zone of the TGRR were 386.65, 19.31, and 5.27 mg/g for leaves respectively, 404.02, 11.23, and 4.81 mg/g for stems respectively, and 388.22, 9.32, and 3.27 mg/g for roots respectively. The C:N, C:P and N:P ratios were 16.15, 191.7 and 5.56 for leaves respectively; 26.98, 273.72 and 4.6 for stems respectively; and 16.63, 223.06 and 4.77 for roots respectively. Riparian plants exhibited nitrogen limitation, with weak carbon sequestration, low nutrient utilization efficiency, and a high capacity for nutrient uptake. Plant C:N:P stoichiometry was significantly different across life forms and organs, with higher N and P concentrations in leaves than stems and roots, and higher in annuals than perennials. While flooding stress triggered distinct responses in the C, N, and P concentrations among annual and perennial plants, they maintained similar stoichiometric ratios along flooding gradients. Furthermore, our investigation identified soil properties and life forms as more influential factors than plant communities in shaping variations in C:N:P stoichiometry in organs. Flooding indirectly impacts plant C:N:P stoichiometry primarily through alterations in plant community composition and soil factors. This study underscores the potential for hydrologic changes to influence plant community composition and soil nutrient dynamics, and further alter plant ecological strategies and biogeochemical cycling in riparian ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lei Wang
- Key Laboratory of Eco-Environments in the Three Gorges Reservoir Region (Ministry of Education), School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
- Chongqing Key Laboratory of Plant Ecology and Resources Research in the Three Gorges Reservoir Region, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Muhammad Arif
- Key Laboratory of Eco-Environments in the Three Gorges Reservoir Region (Ministry of Education), School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
- Chongqing Key Laboratory of Plant Ecology and Resources Research in the Three Gorges Reservoir Region, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
- Biological Science Research Center, Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Jie Zheng
- Key Laboratory of Eco-Environments in the Three Gorges Reservoir Region (Ministry of Education), School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
- Chongqing Key Laboratory of Plant Ecology and Resources Research in the Three Gorges Reservoir Region, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
- Biological Science Research Center, Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Changxiao Li
- Key Laboratory of Eco-Environments in the Three Gorges Reservoir Region (Ministry of Education), School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
- Chongqing Key Laboratory of Plant Ecology and Resources Research in the Three Gorges Reservoir Region, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
- Biological Science Research Center, Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
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Ievinsh G. Halophytic Clonal Plant Species: Important Functional Aspects for Existence in Heterogeneous Saline Habitats. Plants (Basel) 2023; 12:1728. [PMID: 37111952 PMCID: PMC10144567 DOI: 10.3390/plants12081728] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2023] [Revised: 04/13/2023] [Accepted: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
Plant modularity-related traits are important ecological determinants of vegetation composition, dynamics, and resilience. While simple changes in plant biomass resulting from salt treatments are usually considered a sufficient indicator for resistance vs. susceptibility to salinity, plants with a clonal growth pattern show complex responses to changes in environmental conditions. Due to physiological integration, clonal plants often have adaptive advantages in highly heterogeneous or disturbed habitats. Although halophytes native to various heterogeneous habitats have been extensively studied, no special attention has been paid to the peculiarities of salt tolerance mechanisms of clonal halophytes. Therefore, the aim of the present review is to identify probable and possible halophytic plant species belonging to different types of clonal growth and to analyze available scientific information on responses to salinity in these species. Examples, including halophytes with different types of clonal growth, will be analyzed, such as based on differences in the degree of physiological integration, ramet persistence, rate of clonal expansion, salinity-induced clonality, etc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gederts Ievinsh
- Department of Plant Physiology, Faculty of Biology, University of Latvia, 1 Jelgavas Str., LV-1004 Rīga, Latvia
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Jiang P, Han X, Liu Z, Fan S, Zhang X. C:N:P stoichiometric variations of herbs and its relationships with soil properties and species relative abundance along the Xiaokai River irrigation in the Yellow River Delta, China. Front Plant Sci 2023; 14:1130477. [PMID: 36794217 PMCID: PMC9923178 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2023.1130477] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2022] [Accepted: 01/16/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Soil salinity is known to affect plant performance and nutrient stoichiometry by altering their ecophysiology, and thus playing a crucial role in determining plant distribution patterns and nutrient cycles in salinized ecosystems. However, there was little consensus on the effects of salinity stress on plant C, N, and P stoichiometries. Moreover, determining the relationships between species relative species abundance and plant C, N, and P stoichiometries can help to understand the different adaptive strategies between the common and rare species as well as the community assembly process. METHODS We determined the plant C, N, P stoichiometries at the community and species levels and the relative abundance of species as well as the corresponding soil properties from five sampling sites along a soil salinity gradient in the Yellow River Delta, China. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION We found that the C concentration of belowground part increased with soil salinity. Meanwhile, plant community N concentration and C:N ratio tended to decrease with soil salinity, whereas the P concentration, C:P, and N:P ratios exhibited the opposite trends. This indicated that N use efficiency increased, while P use efficiency decreased with soil salinity. Moreover, the decreased N:P ratio indicated that N limitation was gradually aggravated along the soil salinity gradient. The soil C:P ratio and P concentration were the major factors of plant C, N, and P stoichiometries in the early growth stage, whereas the soil pH and P concentration were the major factors of plant C, N, and P stoichiometries in the late growth stage. Compared with that of the rare species, the C:N:P stoichiometry of the most common species was medium. Moreover, the intraspecific variations in the aboveground part N:P ratio and belowground part C concentration showed a significant correlation with species' relative abundance, which indicated that higher intraspecific trait variation might facilitate greater fitness and survival opportunities in environments with high heterogeneity. CONCLUSION Our results revealed that the plant community C:N:P stoichiometry and its determining soil properties varied with plant tissues as well as sampling seasons, and emphasized the importance of intraspecific variation in determining the functional response of plant communities to salinity stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peipei Jiang
- Dongying Key Laboratory of Salt Tolerance Mechanism and Application of Halophytes, Dongying Institute, Shandong Normal University, Dongying, China
- Key Lab of Plant Stress Research, College of Life Sciences, Shandong Normal University, Ji’nan, China
| | - Xiaojun Han
- Binzhou Yellow River Irrigation Management Service Center, Binzhou, China
| | - Ziyu Liu
- School of Industrial Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, United States
| | - Shoujin Fan
- Dongying Key Laboratory of Salt Tolerance Mechanism and Application of Halophytes, Dongying Institute, Shandong Normal University, Dongying, China
- Key Lab of Plant Stress Research, College of Life Sciences, Shandong Normal University, Ji’nan, China
| | - Xuejie Zhang
- Dongying Key Laboratory of Salt Tolerance Mechanism and Application of Halophytes, Dongying Institute, Shandong Normal University, Dongying, China
- Key Lab of Plant Stress Research, College of Life Sciences, Shandong Normal University, Ji’nan, China
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Zhang R, Chen ZH, Cui WT, Qiu SY, Qian ZH, He XG, Xin JC, Si C. Cadmium stress interacts with nutrient availability and light condition to affect the growth of Hydrocotyle vulgaris. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0280449. [PMID: 36652436 PMCID: PMC9847952 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0280449] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2022] [Accepted: 12/30/2022] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Heavy metal pollution is becoming a serious problem in wetland and often co-occurs with nutrient availability and light conditions variation. We hypothesized that nutrient availability and light condition can affect the growth of wetland plants under heavy metal stress. To test this hypothesis, single ramets of a common, clonal wetland plant Hydrocotyle vulgaris were grown for four weeks at three levels of cadmium with three levels of nutrient availability under 30% or 100% light conditions. High level of nutrient availability and high light condition overall promoted growth of H. vulgaris under Cd stress. Under the two light conditions, responses of H. vulgaris to Cd treatments differed among three nutrient levels. Under 30% light condition, 2 mg L-1 Cd2+ treatment decreased total mass at the low nutrient level and decreased ramet number at the medium nutrient level; 0.5 and 2 mg L-1 Cd2+ treatments decreased leaf mass ratio at the low and the medium nutrient levels. Under 100% light condition, 2 mg L-1 Cd2+ treatments significantly decreased total mass at the high level of nutrients; 2 mg L-1 Cd2+ treatment decreased ramet number at the medium and the high nutrient levels and decreased leaf mass ratio at the medium nutrient levels. Our results suggested that Cd stress can interact with nutrient availability and light condition to affect the performance of wetland plants such as H. vulgaris.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Zhang
- School of Life Science and Engineering, Handan University, Handan, China
| | - Zhi-Huan Chen
- School of Special Education, Handan University, Handan, China
| | - Wen-Tao Cui
- School of Life Science and Engineering, Handan University, Handan, China
| | - Shang-Yan Qiu
- School of Life Science and Engineering, Handan University, Handan, China
| | - Zi-Han Qian
- School of Life Science and Engineering, Handan University, Handan, China
| | - Xue-Ge He
- School of Life Science and Engineering, Handan University, Handan, China
| | - Jun-Cai Xin
- School of Life Science and Engineering, Handan University, Handan, China
| | - Chao Si
- School of Life Science and Engineering, Handan University, Handan, China
- * E-mail:
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Li Q, Wen J, Zhao CZ, Zhao LC, Ke D. The relationship between the main leaf traits and photosynthetic physiological characteristics of Phragmites australis under different habitats of a salt marsh in Qinwangchuan, China. AoB Plants 2022; 14:plac054. [PMID: 36518220 PMCID: PMC9743465 DOI: 10.1093/aobpla/plac054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2022] [Accepted: 10/28/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Plant leaf morphological and photosynthetic physiological characteristics are key functional traits in the adaptability of plants to heterogeneous environments. Analysis of the correlation between leaf morphological traits and photosynthetic physiological characteristics of salt marsh plants is helpful to deepen our understanding of how salt marsh plants adjust their leaf structure and function to adapt to their environment. However, there have been few studies on the relationship between leaf morphology and photosynthetic physiological characteristics of plants in inland salt marshes under a habitat gradient. A Phragmites australis community was divided into three plots based on differences in the wetland habitat conditions: a remote water area (plot I, 400-550 m from the water margin), a middle water area (plot II, 200-350 m from the water margin) and a near water area (plot III, 0-150 m from the water margin). The relationship between leaf morphological traits and photosynthetic physiological parameters of P. australis in heterogeneous habitats was studied. The results showed that as the habitat conditions changed from plot I to plot III, the soil characteristics, above-ground characteristics of the community and the photosynthetically active radiation changed significantly (P < 0.05). Besides, there was a highly significant positive correlation (P < 0.01) between leaf dry weight (LDW) and net photosynthetic rate (P n), the effective quantum yield of PSII photochemistry (Y(II), actual photochemical efficiency of PSII) and photochemical quenching (QP); and between leaf area and P n, Y(II) and QP in the three habitats. Moreover, in plot I, P. australis tended to have small and thick leaves with a low LDW and specific leaf area. In plot III, leaves were large and thin to adapt to the change in habitat conditions. This study provides a scientific theoretical basis for understanding the ecological adaptation strategies of plants in the harsh environment of an inland salt marsh and the conservation and management of wetland plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qun Li
- Corresponding authors’ e-mail addresses: ;
| | - Jun Wen
- College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
| | | | - Lian-Chun Zhao
- College of Economics, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
| | - Dan Ke
- College of Resource and Environment, Xichang University, Xichang 615013, China
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Fan J, Liu T, Liao Y, Li Y, Yan Y, Lu X. Distinguishing Stoichiometric Homeostasis of Soil Microbial Biomass in Alpine Grassland Ecosystems: Evidence From 5,000 km Belt Transect Across Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Front Plant Sci 2021; 12:781695. [PMID: 34925425 PMCID: PMC8675581 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2021.781695] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2021] [Accepted: 10/28/2021] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
The biogeographic characteristics of soil microbial biomass stoichiometry homeostasis and also its mechanisms are commonly thought to be key factors for the survival strategies and resource utilization of soil microbes under extreme habitat. In this work, we conducted a 5,000-km transect filed survey in alpine grassland across Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in 2015 to measure soil microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and nitrogen (MBN) across alpine steppe and meadow. Based on the differences of climate and soil conditions between alpine steppe and meadow, the variation coefficient was calculated to investigate the homeostatic degree of MBC to MBN. Furthermore, the "trade-off" model was utilized to deeply distinguish the homeostasis degree of MBC/MBN between alpine steppe and meadow, and the regression analysis was used to explore the variability of trade-off in response to environmental factors in the alpine grassland. The results showed that the coefficient of variation (CV) of MBC/MBN in alpine meadow (CV = 0.4) was lower than alpine steppe (CV = 0.7). According to the trade-off model, microbial turnover activity of soil N relative to soil C increased rapidly and then decreased slightly with soil organic carbon (SOC), soil total nitrogen (STN), and soil water content across alpine meadow. Nevertheless, in alpine steppe, SOC/STN had a positive effect on microbial turnover of soil N. These results suggested that water, heat, and soil nutrients availability were the key factors affecting the C:N stoichiometry homeostasis of soil microbial biomass in Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP)'s alpine grassland. Since the difference of survival strategy of the trade-off demands between soil C and N resulting in different patterns and mechanism, the stoichiometry homeostasis of soil microbial biomass was more stable in alpine meadow than in alpine steppe.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jihui Fan
- Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, China
| | - Tianyuan Liu
- Key Laboratory of Ecosystem Network Observation and Modelling, Synthesis Research Centre of Chinese Ecosystem Research Network, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Ying Liao
- Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, China
- College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yiying Li
- Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, China
- College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yan Yan
- Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, China
| | - Xuyang Lu
- Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, China
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