The ZOS7-MYB60 module confers drought-stress tolerance in rice

Shanlan upland rice is an important landrace resource with high drought stress(DS)tolerance.Despite its importance,genes responsible for yield in Shanlan upland rice have yet to be discovered.Our previous study identified a drought-responsive zinc finger protein,ZOS7,as highly expressed in Shanlandao upland rice.However,the function of this gene in controlling drought tolerance remains largely unexplored.In this study,we found that overexpressing ZOS7,a drought-responsive zinc finger protein,in rice increased biomass and yield under drought stress.Co-overexpressing ZOS7 and MYB60,encoding a protein with which ZOS7 interacted,intensified the yield increase.ZOS7 and MYB60 appear to form a module that confers drought tolerance by regulating stomatal density and wax biosynthesis.The ZOS7-MYB60module could be used in molecular breeding for drought tolerance in rice.

Photosynthetic response dynamics in the invasive species Tithonia diversifolia and two co-occurring native shrub species under fluctuating light conditions

To determine the invasiveness of invasive plants,many studies have compared photosynthetic traits or strategies between invasive and native species.However,few studies have compared the photosynthetic dynamics between invasive and native species during light fluctuations.We compared photosynthetic induction,relaxation dynamics and leaf traits between the invasive species,Tithonia diversifolia and two native species,Clerodendrum bungei and Blumea balsamifera,in full-sun and shady habitats.The photosynthetic dynamics and leaf traits differed among species.T.diversifolia showed a slower induction speed and stomatal opening response but had higher average intrinsic water-use efficiency than the two native species in full-sun habitats.Thus,the slow induction response may be attributed to the longer stomatal length in T.diversifolia.Habitat had a significant effect on photosynthetic dynamics in T.diversifolia and B.balsamifera but not in C.bungei.In shady habitat,T.diversifolia had a faster photosynthetic induction response than in full-sun habitat,leading to a higher average stomatal conductance during photosynthetic induction in T.diversifolia than in the two native species.In contrast,B.balsamifera had a larger stomatal length and slower photosynthetic induction and relaxation response in shady habitat than in full-sun habitat,resulting in higher carbon gain during photosynthetic relaxation.Nevertheless,in both habitats,T.diversifolia had an overall higher carbon gain during light fluctuations than the two native species.Our results indicated that T.diversifolia can adopt more effective response strategies under fluctuating light environments to maximize carbon gain,which may contribute to its successful invasion.

VPD modifies CO_(2) fertilization effect on tomato plants via abscisic acid and jasmonic acid signaling pathways

Atmospheric CO_(2)concentration is elevated globally,which has“CO_(2)fertilization effects”and potentially improves plant photosynthesis,yield,and productivity.Despite the beneficial effect of CO_(2)fertilization being modulated by vapor pressure deficit(VPD),the underlying mechanism is highly uncertain.In the present study,the potential roles of hormones in determining CO_(2)fertilization effects under contrasting high and low VPD conditions were investigated by integrated physiological and transcriptomic analyses.Beneficial CO_(2)fertilization effects were offset under high VPD conditions and were constrained by plant water stress and photosynthetic CO_(2)utilization.High VPD induced a large passive water driving force,which disrupted the water balance and consequently caused plant water deficit.Leaf water potential,turgor pressure,and hydraulic conductance declined under high VPD stress.The physiological evidence combined with transcriptomic analyses demonstrated that abscisic acid(ABA)and jasmonic acid(JA)potentially acted as drought-signaling molecules in response to high VPD stress.Increased foliar ABA and JA content triggered stomatal closure to prevent excessive water loss under high VPD stress,which simultaneously increased the diffusion resistance for CO_(2)uptake from atmosphere to leaf intercellular space.High VPD also significantly increased mesophyll resistance for CO_(2)transport from stomatal cavity to fixation site inside chloroplast.The chloroplast“sink”CO_(2)availability was constrained by stomatal and mesophyll resistance under high VPD stress,despite the atmospheric“source”CO_(2)concentration being elevated.Thus,ABA-and JA-mediated drought-resistant mechanisms potentially modified the beneficial effect of CO_(2)fertilization on photosynthesis,plant growth,and yield productivity.This study provides valuable information for improving the utilization efficiency of CO_(2)fertilization and a better understanding of the physiological processes.

Changes in Leaf Stomatal Properties in Rice with the Growing Season

Transplanting rice varieties grown in different seasons can lead to different yields due to different dry matterproduction. Early-season rice varieties transplanted in the late season can obtain high yields with short-growthduration and higher yields driven by higher dry matter production. To make clear the variations in dry matterproduction across seasons, four early-season rice varieties were chosen for late-season transplantation. The grainyield, dry matter accumulation, leaf photosynthetic, and leaf stomatal properties were studied. It was observedthat the average yields of these four varieties in the late season were 33% greater, despite a reduced growth periodof 13 days in comparison with the early season. Furthermore, there was a notable increase in both total and postheadingdry matter production during the late season. The leaf net photosynthetic rate, stomatal area, stomatalwidth, and stomatal length were higher in the late season. Despite no significant difference in stomatal densitybetween seasons, strong positive linear relationships were observed between net photosynthetic rate and stomatalconductance, and between stomatal conductance and area. These relationships demonstrate that the increase ofthe stomatal width and length of the leaves in the late season leads to an increase in the stomatal area, therebyincreasing the stomatal conductance and enhancing the photosynthesis of the leaves. Consequently, this leads togreater dry matter production and a higher yield compared to the early season. Therefore, when breeding newhigh-yielding and short-growing varieties, the large stomatal area can be used as a reference index.

Stomatal dynamics are regulated by leaf hydraulic traits and guard cell anatomy in nine true mangrove species

Stomatal regulation is critical for mangroves to survive in the hyper-saline intertidal zone where water stress is severe and water availability is highly fluctuant.However,very little is known about the stomatal sensitivity to vapour pressure deficit(VPD)in mangroves,and its co-ordination with stomatal morphology and leaf hydraulic traits.We measured the stomatal response to a step increase in VPD in situ,stomatal anatomy,leaf hydraulic vulnerability and pressure-volume traits in nine true mangrove species of five families and collected the data of genome size.We aimed to answer two questions:(1)Does stomatal morphology influence stomatal dynamics in response to a high VPD in mangroves?with a consideration of possible influence of genome size on stomatal morphology;and(2)do leaf hydraulic traits influence stomatal sensitivity to VPD in mangroves?We found that the stomata of mangrove plants were highly sensitive to a step rise in VPD and the stomatal responses were directly affected by stomatal anatomy and hydraulic traits.Smaller,denser stomata was correlated with faster stomatal closure at high VPD across the species of Rhizophoraceae,and stomata size negatively and vein density positively correlated with genome size.Less negative leaf osmotic pressure at the full turgor(πo)was related to higher operating steady-state stomatal conductance(gs);and a higher leaf capacitance(Cleaf)and more embolism resistant leaf xylem were associated with slower stomatal responses to an increase in VPD.In addition,stomatal responsiveness to VPD was indirectly affected by leaf morphological traits,which were affected by site salinity and consequently leaf water status.Our results demonstrate that mangroves display a unique relationship between genome size,stomatal size and vein packing,and that stomatal responsiveness to VPD is regulated by leaf hydraulic traits and stomatal morphology.Our work provides a quantitative framework to better understand of stomatal regulation in mangroves in an environment with high salinity and dynamic water availability.

Seasonal Changes in Photosynthetic Characteristics of Ammopiptanthus mongolicus

Seasonal changes in the photosynthetic characteristics of Ammopiptantus mongolicus (Maxim. )Chen f. were studied. When the net photosynthetic rate decreased with the elevation of air temperature, thestomatal conductance and stomatal limitation value tended to decline simultaneously, while the interoellularCO2 concentration was increased. According to the two criteria discriminating the stomatal limitation of Photosynthesis suggeSted by Fmrquhar and Sharkey, the seasonal changes in these parameters indicated that the decrease in Pn may not be due to stomatal factor. These studies proved that the relative contents of the large subunit of Rubisco and the photochemical activities correlated with the seasonal changes in the net photosyntheticrate, whieh may show that these two factors contribute primarily to the seasonal changeS in CO2 assimilation.

Evidence of Hydropassive Movement in Stomatal Oscillations of Glycyrrhiza inflata under Desert Conditions

Stomatal conductance was found to change from steady-state to a slate of oscillations during daytime when vapour pressure deficit (VPD) increased to a value of 1 kPa in Glycyrrhiza inflata Batalin grown under the conditions of arid desert in north-west China. The injected metabolic inhibitors (NaN3 or carbonyl cyanide-m-chlorophenyl-hydrazone (CCCP)) slightly reduced the stomatal conductance but did not significantly decrease the intensity of stomatal oscillations (amplitude/average). The oscillation intensity was found to he significantly correlated with VPD and root resistance, but not with the respiration rate. There might exist a minimum threshold of VPD (0.8 kPa) and root resistance (1/4 relative value) that induced stomatal oscillations. These results suggested that stomatal oscillations induced by atmospheric drought stress and root resistance were mainly a type of hydropassive movement.

Identification of Plasma Membrane Aquaporin in Guard Cells of Vicia faba and Its Role in Stomatal Movement

Water channels or aquaporins are the main pathways of water transport. Both the existence and function of aquaporins in die guard cells of Vicia faba L. were investigated both by using RD28 cDNA and RD28 antibody as probes, and by controlling stomatal movement as a parameter combined with antibody and inhibitor of aquaporins respectively. The results revealed that RD28 mRNA, encoding a plasma membrane aquaporin, expressed in ale mesophyll cells and vascular tissues of V. faba, especially in guard cells. And the location of RD28-like proteins was mainly on plasma membrane of guard cells. The addition of 25 mumol/L HgCl2, an aquaporin blocker, and antibody of RD28 as well, greatly suppressed the stomatal opening or guardcell protoplast swelling induced by fusicoccin and light, and closing induced by abscisic acid. However, 5 mmol/L, beta-mercaptoethanol, a reverse reagent of aquaporin blocker, reversed the inhibitory effect of HgCl2 Pretreatment oil stomatal opening ( i.e., HgCl2 was removed after HgCl2 pretreatment for 10 min). The results suggest that the aquaporins in V. faba are associated with stomatal movement.

SIMULATION OF THE PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES OF C 3 PLANT LEAVES TO ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS BY A MODEL WHICH COMBINES STOMATAL CONDUCTANCE, PHOTOSYNTHESIS AND TRANSPIRATION

Transpiration element is included in the integrated stomatal conductance photosynthesis model by considering gaseous transfer processes, so the present model is capable to simulate the influence of boundary layer conductance. Leuning in his revised Ball's model replaced relative humidity with VPD s (the vapor pressure deficit from stomatal pore to leaf surface) and thereby made the relation with transpiration more straightforward, and made it possible for the regulation of transpiration and the influence of boundary layer conductance to be integrated into the combined model. If the differences in water vapor and CO 2 concentration between leaf and ambient air are considered, VPD s , the evaporative demand, is influenced by stomatal and boundary layer conductance. The physiological responses of photosynthesis, transpiration, and stomatal function, and the changes of intercellular CO 2 and water use efficiency to environmental factors, such as wind speed, photon flux density, leaf temperature and ambient CO 2, are analyzed. It is shown that if the boundary layer conductance drops to a level comparable with stomatal conductance, the results of simulation by the model presented here differ significantly from those by the previous model, and, in some cases, are more realistic than the latter.

Leaf Epidermal Feature in Clematis (Ranunculaceae) with Reference to Its Systematic Significance

For finding valuable systematic characters, leaf epidermis of 77 taxa, representing 12 sections of the genus Clematis and three related genera in the Ranunculaceae, were examined mainly by means of light microscopy (LM), and partially by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). It was shown that the leaf epidermal cells were usually irregular or polygonal in shape. The patterns of anticlinal walls were straight, arched or undulate. The stomatal apparatus is anomocytic and exists in abaxial epidermis of all species, and in the adaxial epidermis of some species. Under SEM observation, the leaf epidermis was often striated, seldom nearly smooth, and often with flakes attached. Evidence from leaf epidermis serves as a criterion for distinguishing the subsections in sect. Meclatis (Spach) Tamura and in sect. Fruticella Tamura. The results also support that there are several separate evolutionary processes in the genus Clematis .

Relationship Between Ecophysiological Features and Grain Yield in Different Soybean Varieties

Photosynthetic rate ( P n ), transpiration rate ( E ), stomatal conductance ( g s ), water use efficiency ( WUE ), intercellular CO 2( C i ) and leaf water potential ( Ψ ) in varieties of soybean ( Glycine max (L.) Merr.) measured in the past three decades (1970s, 1980s and 1990s) and their inter_relationships were analyzed. These parameters of soybean changed with development stages. It is shown that there was a strongly positive relationship between the yield of soybean and its net photosynthetic rate. Soybean varieties with high yield potential had higher P n , g s and Ψ than those with low yield potential. Their values of C i were remarkably lower. Such relationship was especially remarkable at the critical stage of pod_bearing. P n of soybean of high yield was obviously higher than that of low yield. Of the different stages, the highest P n was found in the pod_bearing stage and other values were higher, too. P n and Ψ of modern soybean varieties were higher and such was continuing. Increased partitioning of carbon to seed and the size of sink may also be important for yield formation when P n values were remarkably higher in the pod_bearing stage.

Effects of water stress on Haloxylon ammodendron seedlings in the desert region of Heihe inland river watershed, Gansu Province, China

The water relation and leaf gas exchange of saxoul (Haloxylon Ammodendron Bge, a C4 shrub) seedlings were studied under water stress in 2001. Saxoul seedlings maintained high transpiration when the soil moisture was above 11%. The seedlings were able to take up water from soil with above 6 % soil water content, which was the threshold level of soil moisture for seedlings. The relationship between transpiration and potential evaporation was linear for well-watered seedlings. The de-crease of soil water availability led to different degrees of down-regulation of stomatal conductance, leaf transpiration and net CO2 assimilation rate. The stomata played a relatively small part in determining the net CO2 assimilation rate for the same seedling. The relationship between net CO2 assimilation rate and transpiration was linear diurnally, and reduction scale of leaf transpiration was much bigger than that of net CO2 assimilation rate by waters tress treatments, therefore intrinsic wa-ter-use-efficiency increased. High evaporative demand increased the leaf transpiration but inhibited net CO2 assimilation rate. Because of the effect of VPD on transpiration in this region, the transpiration of well-watered and mild water stress seedlings becomes responsive to change in stomatal conductance over a wider range.

Tempo-Spatial Variations in Stomatal Conductance, Aperture and Density of Ligustrum sinense Acclimated to Different Light Environments

There was heterogeneous distribution in stomatal conductance (g-s) and stomatal aperture for both high- and low-light leaves of Ligustrum sinense Lour. in four designated positions within a leaf. Linear or exponential or polynomial relationships between g-s and stomatal aperture were found when regression of g-s and stomatal aperture was established. Statistical analysis revealed that the relationship between g-s and stomatal aperture for high-light leaves was more significant than that of low-light leaves. A linear relationship between g-s and stomatal aperture existed in both positions 1 and 3 for both high- and low-light leaves. The stomatal density of the low-light leaves was much lower than that of the high-light leaves. The sensitivity of stomata to changing environment for high-light leaves was higher than that for low-light leaves, which may also relate to the higher stomatal density for the high-light leaves.

Involvement of Calcium dependent Protein Kinases in ABA regulation of Stomatal Movement

Patch clamp techniques were employed to investigate if calcium dependent protein kinases (CDPKs) be involved in the signal transduction pathways of stomatal movement regulation by the phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA) in Vicia faba. Stomatal opening was completely inhibited by external application of 1 μmol/L ABA, and such ABA inhibition was significantly reversed by the addition of CDPK inhibitor trifluoperazine (TFP). The inward whole cell K + currents were inhibited by 60% in the presence of 1 μmol/L intracellular ABA, and this inhibition was completely abolished by the addition of CDPK competitive substrate histone Ⅲ S. The results suggest that CDPKs may be involved in the signal transduction cascades of ABA regulated stomatal movements.

Stomatal Opening Induced by Acetylcholine Is Associated with Cytoskeletal Components

Acetylcholine (Ach) is a key component of animal cholinergic system. Recent experiments demonstrated that Ach, choline acetyltransferase, acetylcholinesterase and Ach receptors are present in all parts of plants and have many functions, including inducing stomatal movement. The authors' previous work has evidenced that microtubules and microfilaments are involved in regulating both stomatal closing and opening. The present investigation is to determine whether stomatal opening induced by Ach is associated with microtubules and microfilaments. The results showed that Ach could induce stomatal opening of Vicia faba L. with or without addition of KCl in the dark. Ach also stimulated protoplast swelling in a K +_free solution in the dark. However, the induction was partially suppressed when the strips and protoplasts were pretreated with either cytochalasin B, an inhibitor of F_actin polymerization, or oryzalin, an inhibitor of plant microtubule polymerization. Thus, our data suggest for the first time that stomatal opening induced by Ach is associated with the dynamics of microtubules and microfilaments.

Applicability of Some Stomatal Models to Natural Conditions

Under natural conditions, the use of vapor pressure deficit between mesophyll cell surface and ambient air ( VPD s ) instead of atmospheric humidity factors in some stomatal models may markedly promote the applicability of stomatal models. It has been pointed out from theoretical analysis that the expression of the responses of stomatal conductance to VPD s is equivalent to the expression of responses of stomatal conductance to water loss of transpiration in stomatal models.

Effects of Periodical Soil Drying and Leaf Water Potential on the Sensitivity of Stomatal Response to Xylem ABA

The study on the changes of stomatal sensitivity in relation to xylem ABA during periodical soil drying and the effect of leaf water status on the stomatal sensitivity has confirmed that xylem ABA concentration is a good indicator of soil water status around roots and the relation between xylem ABA concentration and predawn leaf water potential remained constant during the three consecutive soil drying cycles based on the slopes of the fitted lines. The sensitivity of stomata to xylem ABA increased substantially as the soil drying cycles progressed, and the xylem ABA concentration needed to cause a 50% decrease of stomatal conductance was as low as 550 nmol/L in the next two soil drying cycle, as compared with the 750 nmol/L ABA in the first cycle of soil drying. The results using the split_root system showed that leaf water deficit significantly enhanced the stomatal response to xylem ABA and the xylem ABA concentration needed to cause a 50% decrease in stomatal conductance was 2 to 4 times smaller in the whole_root_drying treatment than those in the semi_root_drying treatment. These results suggested that the sensitivity of stomata to xylem ABA concentration is not a fixed characteristic.

The Dynamic Study on Transpiration Consumption of Black Locust Forest

To know the annual water consumption of forest, it is necessary to acquire the annual transpiration value of stands. This paper is based on the data measured in the typical weather of the growth season, from 1998 to 2000, with the LI 1600 Steady Porometer and the general weather information. The daily variation of transpiration in black locust forest ( Robinia pesudoacacia L.) is modeled by Penman Monteith equation. As a result of the model, a continuous daily transpiration in the growth season was calculated. The net radiation, intercepted by black locust forest canopy, was acquired from a semi empirical equation of measuring net radiation R n with the extinction coefficient k and leaf area index LAI . The canopy integral stomatic resistance is a mimesis with an empirical equation of measuring data. Compared with measuring data, the relative error of the modeled ones is less than 12% averagely. At last, the total transpiration of black locust forest during the period of 1998 and 2000 in the growth season of May to October, as an average transpiration of the different density stands, were 192 46, 187 07 and 195 59?mm respectively.

Studies on Photosynthetic Characteristics of Tomato Leaves after Inoculation with Tomato Powdery Mildew (Oidium neolycopersici)

[ Objective ] The paper was to explore the pathogenic mechanism of tomato powdery mildew, and to study the effects of the disease on photosynthetic characteristics of tomato. [ Method ] With four tomato varieties as materials, the pathogen of tomato powdery mildew was artificially inoculated. After the varieties were infected, the parameters including net photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance and transpiration rate of tomato leaf were measured by Li-6400 portable photo- synthesis detector under natural lighting conditions. [ Result] The net photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance and transpiration rate of four tomato varieties all decreased after infection. However, the decrease extent of these parameters of four varieties was different. The parameters of seriously damaged Jinyangdajuxdng （ No. 4） and Xinsheng No. 1 （ No. 5 ） decreased greatly, while the parameters of slightly damaged Lujia （ No. 13 ） and improved 98-6 decreased lightly. [ Condu- sion] The results could provide theoretical basis for the study on pathogenic mechanism, new prevention way and resistance breeding of tomato powdery mildew.

Study on the Polyploid Induction of Lycium ruthenicum Murr.

With apical leaves of Lycium ruthenicum Murr as experimental material, the polyploids of L. ruthenicum were induced with colchicine solution, and total four polyploidy plants were identified by chromosome courts. The results showed that tetraploid plants of L. ruthenicum were successfully induced with 300 mg/L of colchicine solution after 7 and 21 d of induction, with 400 mg/L of colchicine solution after 14 days of induction, and with 500 mg/L of colchicine solution after 7 days of induction, respectively.