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Increasing evidence supports a major role for abiotic stress response in the success of plant polyploids, which usually thrive in harsh environments. However, understanding the ecophysiology of polyploids is challenging due to interactions between genome doubling and natural selection. Here, we investigated physiological responses, gene expression, and the epiphenotype of two related Dianthus broteri cytotypes—with different genome duplications (4× and 12×) and evolutionary trajectories—to short extreme temperature events (42/28 °C and 9/5 °C). The 12× cytotype showed higher expression of stress-responsive genes (SWEET1 , PP2C16 , AI5L3 , and ATHB7) and enhanced gas exchange compared with 4×. Under heat stress, both ploidies had greatly impaired physiological performance and altered gene expression, with reduced cytosine methylation. However, the 12× cytotype exhibited remarkable physiological tolerance (maintaining gas exchange and water status via greater photochemical integrity and probably enhanced water storage) while down-regulating PP2C16 expression. Conversely, 4× D. broteri was susceptible to thermal stress despite prioritizing water conservation, showing signs of non-stomatal photosynthetic limitations and irreversible photochemical damage. This cytotype also presented gene-specific expression patterns under heat, up-regulating ATHB7. These findings provide insights into divergent stress response strategies and physiological resistance resulting from polyploidy, highlighting its widespread influence on plant function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) provides an opportunity to rapidly and non-destructively investigate how plants respond to stress. Here, we explored the potential of SIF to detect the effects of elevated O3 on soybean in the field where soybean was subjected to ambient and elevated O3 throughout the growing season in 2021. Exposure to elevated O3 resulted in a significant decrease in canopy SIF at 760 nm (SIF760), with a larger decrease in the late growing season (36%) compared with the middle growing season (13%). Elevated O3 significantly decreased the fraction of absorbed photosynthetically active radiation by 8–15% in the middle growing season and by 35% in the late growing stage. SIF760 escape ratio (f esc) was significantly increased under elevated O3 by 5–12% in the late growth stage due to a decrease of leaf chlorophyll content and leaf area index. Fluorescence yield of the canopy was reduced by 5–11% in the late growing season depending on the f esc estimation method, during which leaf maximum carboxylation rate and maximum electron transport were significantly reduced by 29% and 20% under elevated O3. These results demonstrated that SIF could capture the elevated O3 effect on canopy structure and acceleration of senescence in soybean and provide empirical support for using SIF for soybean stress detection and phenotyping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the physiological responses of crops to drought is important for ensuring sustained crop productivity under climate change, which is expected to exacerbate the frequency and intensity of periods of drought. Drought responses involve multiple traits, and the correlations between these traits are poorly understood. Using a variety of techniques, we estimated the changes in gas exchange, leaf hydraulic conductance, and leaf turgor in rice (Oryza sativa) in response to both short- and long-term soil drought. We performed a photosynthetic limitation analysis to quantify the contributions of each limiting factor to the resultant overall decrease in photosynthesis during drought. Biomass, leaf area, and leaf width significantly decreased during the 2-week drought treatment, but leaf mass per area and leaf vein density increased. Light-saturated photosynthetic rate declined dramatically during soil drought, mainly due to the decrease in stomatal conductance (g s) and mesophyll conductance (g m). Stomatal modeling suggested that the decline in leaf hydraulic conductance explained most of the decrease in stomatal closure during the drought treatment, and may also trigger the drought-related decrease of stomatal conductance and mesophyll conductance. The results of this study provide insight into the regulation of carbon assimilation under drought conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Guzmania monostachia (Bromeliaceae) is a tropical epiphyte capable of up-regulating crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) in its photosynthetic tissues in response to changing nutrient and water availability. Previous studies have shown that under drought there is a gradient of increasing CAM expression from the basal (youngest) to the apical (oldest) portion of the leaves, and additionally that nitrogen deficiency can further increase CAM intensity in the leaf apex of this bromeliad. The present study investigated the inter-relationships between nitrogen source (nitrate and/or ammonium) and water deficit in regulating CAM expression in G. monostachia leaves. The highest CAM activity was observed under ammonium nutrition in combination with water deficit. This was associated with enhanced activity of the key enzyme phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase, elevated rates of ATP- and PPi-dependent proton transport at the vacuolar membrane in the presence of malate, and increased transcript levels of the vacuolar malate channel- encoding gene, ALMT. Water deficit was consistently associated with higher levels of total soluble sugars, which were maximal under ammonium nutrition, as were the activities of several antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase, catalase, ascorbate peroxidase, and glutathione reductase). Thus, ammonium nutrition, whilst associated with the highest degree of CAM induction in G. monostachia, also mitigates the effects of water deficit by osmotic adjustment and can limit oxidative damage in the leaves of this bromeliad under conditions that may be typical of its epiphytic habitat. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ocean acidification and warming are affecting polar regions with particular intensity. Rocky shores of the Antarctic Peninsula are dominated by canopy-forming Desmarestiales. This study investigates the physiological and transcriptomic responses of the endemic macroalga Desmarestia anceps to a combination of different levels of temperature (2 and 7 °C), dissolved CO2 (380 and 1000 ppm), and irradiance (65 and 145 μmol photons m-2 s-1). Growth and photosynthesis increased at high CO2 conditions, and strongly decreased at 2 °C plus high irradiance, in comparison to the other treatments. Photoinhibition at 2 °C plus high irradiance was evidenced by the photochemical performance and intensive release of dissolved organic carbon. The highest number of differentially regulated transcripts was observed in thalli exposed to 2 °C plus high irradiance. Algal 13C isotopic discrimination values suggested an absence of down-regulation of carbon-concentrating mechanisms at high CO2. CO2 enrichment induced few transcriptomic changes. There was high and constitutive gene expression of many photochemical and inorganic carbon utilization components, which might be related to the strong adaptation of D. anceps to the Antarctic environment. These results suggest that increased temperature and CO2 will allow D. anceps to maintain its productivity while tolerating higher irradiances than at present conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The acquisition of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) in CO2-limited seawater is a central issue to understand in marine primary production. We previously demonstrated the occurrence of direct HCO3- uptake by solute carrier (SLC) 4 transporters in a diatom, a major marine primary producer. Homologs of SLC are found in both centric and pennate marine diatoms, suggesting that SLC transporters are generally conserved. Here, the generality of SLC-mediated DIC uptake in diatoms was examined using an SLC inhibitor, diisothiocyano-2,2'-stilbenedisulfonic acid (DIDS), and an inhibitor of external carbonic anhydrase, acetazolamide. DIDS suppressed high-DIC-affinity photosynthesis in the pennate diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum and the centric diatom Chaetoceros muelleri, but there was no effect on either the pennate Cylindrotheca fusiformis or the centric Thalassiosira pseudonana. Interestingly, the DIC affinity of DIDS-insensitive strains was sensitive to treatment with up to 100 μM acetazolamide, displaying a 2-4-fold increase in K0.5[DIC]. In contrast, acetazolamide did not affect the DIDS-sensitive group. These results indicate the occurrence of two distinct strategies for DIC uptake--one primarily facilitated by SLC and the other being passive CO2 entry facilitated by external carbonic anhydrase. The phylogenetic independence of these strategies suggests that environmental demands drove the evolution of distinct DIC uptake mechanisms in diatoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marine diatoms are one of the most ecologically significant primary producers in the ocean. Most diatoms use a CO2-concentrating mechanism (CCM) to overcome the scarcity of CO2 in the ocean and limitations of the carbon-fixing enzyme Rubisco. However, the CCMs in model diatoms differ substantially in their genetic make-up and structural organization. To assess the extent of CCM diversity in marine diatoms more generally, we analyzed genome and transcriptome data from 31 diatom strains to identify putative CCM genes, examine the overall CCM architecture, and study CCM development in the context of the evolutionary history of these diatoms. Key CCM genes [carbonic anhydrases (CAs) and solute carrier 4 (SLC4) bicarbonate transporters] identified in the diatoms were placed into groups of likely orthologs by sequence similarity (OrthoMCL) and phylogenetic methods. These analyses indicated that diatoms seem to share similar HCO3- transporters, but possess a variety of CAs that have either undergone extensive diversification within the diatom lineage or have been acquired through horizontal gene transfer. Hierarchical clustering of the diatom species based on their CCM gene content suggests that CCM development is largely congruent with evolution of diatom species, despite some notable differences in CCM genes even among closely related species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The supply of inorganic carbon (Ci) at the site of fixation by Rubisco is a key parameter for efficient CO2 fixation in aquatic organisms including the green alga, Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. Chlamydomonas reinhardtii cells, when grown on limiting CO2, have a CO2-concentrating mechanism (CCM) that functions to concentrate CO2 at the site of Rubisco. Proteins thought to be involved in inorganic carbon uptake have been identified and localized to the plasma membrane or chloroplast envelope. However, current CCM models suggest that additional molecular components are involved in Ci uptake. In this study, the gene Cia8 was identified in an insertional mutagenesis screen and characterized. The protein encoded by Cia8 belongs to the sodium bile acid symporter subfamily. Transcript levels for this gene were significantly up-regulated when the cells were grown on low CO2. The cia8 mutant exhibited reduced growth and reduced affinity for Ci when grown in limiting CO2 conditions. Prediction programs localize this protein to the chloroplast. Ci uptake and the photosynthetic rate, particularly at high external pH, were reduced in the mutant. The results are consistent with the model that CIA8 is involved in Ci uptake in C. reinhardtii. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The presence of CO2-concentrating mechanisms (CCMs) is believed to be one of the characteristics that allows diatoms to thrive in many environments and to be major contributors to global productivity. Here, the type of CCM and the responses to variable CO2 concentration were studied in marine and freshwater diatoms. At 400 ppm, there was a large diversity in physiological and biochemical mechanisms among the species. While Phaeodactylum tricornutum mainly used HCO3-, Thalassiosira pseudonana mainly used CO2. Carbonic anhydrase was an important component of the CCM in all species and C4 metabolism was absent, even with T. weissflogii. For all species, at 20 000 ppm, the affinity for dissolved inorganic carbon was lower than at 400 ppm CO2 and the reliance on CO2 was higher. Despite the difference in availability of inorganic carbon in marine and fresh waters, there were only small differences in CCMs between species from the two environments, and Navicula pelliculosa behaved similarly when grown in the two environments. The results suggest that species-specific differences are great, and more important than environmental differences in determining the nature and effectiveness of the CCM in diatoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pyrenoid of the unicellular green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii is a microcompartment situated in the centre of the cup-shaped chloroplast, containing up to 90% of cellular Rubisco. Traversed by a network of dense, knotted thylakoid tubules, the pyrenoid has been proposed to influence thylakoid biogenesis and ultrastructure. Mutants that are unable to assemble a pyrenoid matrix, due to expressing a vascular plant version of the Rubisco small subunit, exhibit severe growth and photosynthetic defects and have an ineffective carbon-concentrating mechanism (CCM). The present study set out to determine the cause of photosynthetic limitation in these pyrenoid-less lines. We tested whether electron transport and light use were compromised as a direct structural consequence of pyrenoid loss or as a metabolic effect downstream of lower CCM activity and resulting CO2 limitation. Thylakoid organization was unchanged in the mutants, including the retention of intrapyrenoid-type thylakoid tubules, and photosynthetic limitations associated with the absence of the pyrenoid were rescued by exposing cells to elevated CO2 levels. These results demonstrate that Rubisco aggregation in the pyrenoid functions as an essential element for CO2 delivery as part of the CCM, and does not play other roles in maintenance of photosynthetic membrane energetics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbon-concentrating mechanisms (CCMs) enable efficient photosynthesis and growth in CO2-limiting environments, and in eukaryotic microalgae localisation of Rubisco to a microcompartment called the pyrenoid is key. In the model green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, Rubisco preferentially relocalises to the pyrenoid during CCM induction and pyrenoid-less mutants lack a functioning CCM and grow very poorly at low CO2. The aim of this study was to investigate the CO2 response of pyrenoid-positive (pyr+) and pyrenoid-negative (pyr-) mutant strains to determine the effect of pyrenoid absence on CCM induction and gene expression. Shotgun proteomic analysis of low-CO2-adapted strains showed reduced accumulation of some CCM-related proteins, suggesting that pyr- has limited capacity to respond to low-CO2 conditions. Comparisons between gene transcription and protein expression revealed potential regulatory interactions, since Rubisco protein linker (EPYC1) protein did not accumulate in pyr- despite increased transcription, while elements of the LCIB/LCIC complex were also differentially expressed. Furthermore, pyr- showed altered abundance of a number of proteins involved in primary metabolism, perhaps due to the failure to adapt to low CO2. This work highlights two-way regulation between CCM induction and pyrenoid formation, and provides novel candidates for future studies of pyrenoid assembly and CCM function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diatoms are a diverse group of unicellular algae that contribute significantly to global photosynthetic carbon fixation and export in the modern ocean, and are an important source of microfossils for paleoclimate reconstructions. Because of their importance in the environment, diatoms have been a focus of study on the physiology and ecophysiology of carbon fixation, in particular their CO2-concentrating mechanisms (CCMs) and Rubisco characteristics. While carbon fixation in diatoms is not as well understood as in certain model aquatic photoautotrophs, a greater number of species have been examined in diatoms. Recent work has highlighted a large diversity in the function, physiology, and kinetics of both the CCM and Rubisco between different diatom species. This diversity was unexpected since it has generally been assumed that CCMs and Rubiscos were similar within major algal lineages as the result of selective events deep in evolutionary history, and suggests a more recent co-evolution between the CCM and Rubisco within diatoms. This review explores our current understanding of the diatom CCM and highlights the diversity of both the CCM and Rubisco kinetics. We will suggest possible environmental, physiological, and evolutionary drivers for the co-evolution of the CCM and Rubisco in diatoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diatoms operate a CO2-concentrating mechanism (CCM) that drives upwards of 20% of annual global primary production. Recent progress in CCM research in the marine pennate diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum revealed that this diatom directly takes up HCO3- from seawater through low-CO2-inducible plasma membrane HCO3- transporters, which belong to the solute carrier (SLC) 4 family. Apart from this, studies of carbonic anhydrases (CAs) in diatoms have revealed considerable diversity in classes and localization among species. This strongly suggests that the CA systems, which control permeability and flux of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) by catalysing reversible CO2 hydration, have evolved from diverse origins. Of particular interest is the occurrence of low-CO2-inducible external CAs in the centric marine diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana, offering a strategy of CA-catalysed initial CO2 entry via passive diffusion, contrasting with active DIC transport in P. tricornutum. Molecular mechanisms to transport DIC across chloroplast envelopes are likely also through specific HCO3- transporters, although details have yet to be elucidated. Furthermore, recent discovery of a luminal θ-CA in the diatom thylakoid implied a common strategy in the mechanism to supply CO2 to RubisCO in the pyrenoid, which is conserved among green algae and some heterokontophytes. These results strongly suggest an occurrence of convergent coevolution between the pyrenoid and thylakoid membrane in aquatic photosynthesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nitrogen, an essential macronutrient for plants, regulates many aspects of plant growth and development. Nitrate is one of the major forms of nitrogen taken up by plants from the soil. Nitrate and nitrogen have been reported to regulate flowering; while some studies have shown that lower nitrate/nitrogen promoted flowering, others have reported the opposite trend. To elucidate how nitrate/nitrogen affects flowering, we reviewed the existing literature and conducted experiments to examine flowering time under a wide range of nitrate concentrations using two growth systems. From the literature review and our experiments, we established that differing nitrate availability results in a U-shaped flowering curve, with an optimal concentration of nitrate facilitating flowering and concentrations above or below this optimal concentration delaying flowering. The role of nitrate and nitrogen in regulating flowering has been elucidated by several transcriptomic and mutant studies, which have suggested close interactions between nitrate/nitrogen, phosphate, the circadian clock, photosynthesis, and, potentially, hormones. We discuss several possible molecular mechanisms underlying the U-shaped flowering response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Upregulation of the C4 metabolic cycle is a major step in the evolution of C4 photosynthesis. Why this happened remains unclear, in part because of difficulties measuring the C4 cycle in situ in C3-C4 intermediate species. Now, Alonso-Cantabrana and von Caemmerer (2016) have described a new approach for quantifying C4 cycle activity, thereby providing the means to analyze its upregulation in an evolutionary context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the majority of plants use the typical C3 carbon metabolic pathway, ~6% of angiosperms have adapted to carbon limitation as a result of water stress by employing a modified form of photosynthesis known as Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM). CAM plants concentrate carbon in the cells by temporally separating atmospheric carbon acquisition from fixation into carbohydrates. CAM has been studied for decades, but the evolutionary progression from C3 to CAM remains obscure. In order to better understand the morphological and physiological characteristics associated with CAM photosynthesis, phenotypic variation was assessed in Yucca aloifolia, a CAM species, Yucca filamentosa, a C3 species, and Yucca gloriosa, a hybrid species derived from these two yuccas exhibiting intermediate C3-CAM characteristics. Gas exchange, titratable leaf acidity, and leaf anatomical traits of all three species were assayed in a common garden under well-watered and drought-stressed conditions. Yucca gloriosa showed intermediate phenotypes for nearly all traits measured, including the ability to acquire carbon at night. Using the variation found among individuals of all three species, correlations between traits were assessed to better understand how leaf anatomy and CAM physiology are related. Yucca gloriosa may be constrained by a number of traits which prevent it from using CAM to as high a degree as Y. aloifolia. The intermediate nature of Y. gloriosa makes it a promising system in which to study the evolution of CAM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mesophyll conductance (gm) can markedly limit photosynthetic CO2 assimilation and is required to estimate the parameters of the Farquhar–von Caemmerer–Berry (FvCB) model properly. The variable J (electron transport rate) is the most frequently used method for estimating gm, and the correct determination of J is one of its requirements. Recent evidence has shown that calibrating J can lead to some errors in estimating gm, but to what extent the parameterization of the FvCB model is affected by calibrations is not well known. In addition to determining the FvCB parameters, variants of the J calibration method were tested to address whether varying CO2 or light levels, possible alternative electron sinks, or contrasting leaf structural properties might play a role in determining differences in αβ, the product of the leaf absorptance (α) and the photosystem II optical cross-section (β). It was shown that differences in αβ were mainly attributed to the use of A/Ci or A/PPFD curves to calibrate J. The different αβ values greatly influenced gm, leading to a high number of unrealistic values in addition to affecting the estimates of the FvCB model parameters. A new approach was devised to retrieve leaf respiration in the light from combined A/Ci and A/Cc curves and a framework to understand the high variation in observed gm values. Overall, a background is provided to decrease the noise in gm, facilitating data reporting and allowing better retrieval of the information presented in A/Ci and A/Cc curves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the major physiological dissimilarities between mature root regions and their tips, differences in their gene expression profiles remain largely unexplored. In this research, the transcriptome of rice (Oryza sativa L. subsp. japonica) mature root tissue and root tips was monitored using mRNA-Seq at two time points. Almost 50 million 76 bp reads were mapped onto the rice genome sequence, expression patterns for different tissues and time points were investigated, and at least 1106 novel transcriptionally active regions (nTARs) expressed in rice root tissue were detected. More than 30 000 genes were found to be expressed in rice roots, among which were 1761 root-enriched and 306 tip-enriched transcripts. Mature root tissue appears to respond more strongly to external stimuli than tips, showing a higher expression of, for instance, auxin-responsive and abscisic acid-responsive genes, as well as the phenylpropanoid pathway and photosynthesis upon light. The root tip-enriched transcripts are mainly involved in mitochondrial electron transport, organelle development, secondary metabolism, DNA replication and metabolism, translation, and cellular component organization. During root maturation, genes involved in cell wall biosynthesis and modification, response to oxidative stress, and secondary metabolism were activated. For some nTARs, a potential role in root development can be put forward based on homology to genes involved in CLAVATA signalling, cell cycle regulators, and hormone signalling. A subset of differentially expressed genes and novel transcripts was confirmed using (quantitative) reverse transcription-PCR. These results uncover previously unrecognized tissue-specific expression profiles and provide an interesting starting point to study the different regulation of transcribed regions of these tissues. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Theoretical considerations suggest that wheat yield potential could be increased by up to 50% through the genetic improvement of radiation use efficiency (RUE). However, to achieve agronomic impacts, structural and reproductive aspects of the crop must be improved in parallel. A Wheat Yield Consortium (WYC) has been convened that fosters linkage between ongoing research platforms in order to develop a cohesive portfolio of activities that will maximize the probability of impact in farmers’ fields. Attempts to increase RUE will focus on improving the performance and regulation of Rubisco, introduction of C4-like traits such as CO2-concentrating mechanisms, improvement of light interception, and improvement of photosynthesis at the spike and whole canopy levels. For extra photo-assimilates to translate into increased grain yield, reproductive aspects of growth must be tailored to a range of agro-ecosystems to ensure that stable expression of a high harvest index (HI) is achieved. Adequate partitioning among plant organs will be critical to achieve favourable expression of HI, and to ensure that plants with heavier grain have strong enough stems and roots to avoid lodging. Trait-based hybridization strategies will aim to achieve their simultaneous expression in elite agronomic backgrounds, and wide crossing will be employed to augment genetic diversity where needed; for example, to introduce traits for improving RUE from wild species or C4 crops. Genomic selection approaches will be employed, especially for difficult-to-phenotype traits. Genome-wide selection will be evaluated and is likely to complement crossing of complex but complementary traits by identifying favourable allele combinations among progeny. Products will be delivered to national wheat programmes worldwide via well-established international nursery systems and are expected to make a significant contribution to global food security. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Assesses photosynthetic activities of different chlorophyll-containing parts of tomato plants, using chlorophyll fluorescence techniques. Intrinsic photosynthetic efficiency of dark-adapted tissues of tomato plants; Patterns of photon flux density response.