Low temperature during the vegetative stage affects rice (Oryza sativa L.) seed-setting rate in Heilongjiang province at Northeast China. However, little is known about changes of the photosynthetic rate and physiological response in contrasting rice cultivars during chilling periods. In this study, two rice cultivars with different chilling tolerance were treated with 15°C from June 27 to July 7. The chilling-susceptive cultivar, Longjing11 (LJ11), showed a significant decrease in a ripening rate and seed-setting rate after being treated for four days, whilst chilling-tolerant cultivar, Kongyu131 (KY131), was only slightly affected after 4-d treatment. The photosynthetic activities, chlorophyll contents, and antioxidative enzyme activities in LJ11 decreased significantly along with the chilling treatment. The decrease in ß-carotene contents might play a role as it could cause direct photooxidation of chlorophylls and lead to the inhibition of the photosynthetic apparatus. In the meantime, no significant damage was found in leaves of KY131 from June 27 to July 11. In conclusion, the chilling-tolerance mechanism of rice is tightly related to the photosynthetic rate, metabolism of reactive oxygen species, and scavenging system in the vegetative stage., L.-Z. Wang, L.-M. Wang, H.-T. Xiang, Y. Luo, R. Li, Z.-J. Li, C.-Y. Wang, Y. Meng., and Obsahuje bibliografii
In order to study the responses of dominant species to different land uses in the semiarid temperate grassland of Inner Mongolia, we tested the physiological responses of Stipa grandis, Leymus chinensis, and Artemisia frigida to mowing, grazing exclusion, and grazing land uses at the leaf and ecosystem levels. The grazing-exclusion and mowing sites released CO2, but the grazing site was a net carbon sink. L. chinensis and S. grandis contributed more to the ecosystem CO2 exchange than A. frigida. At the grazing-exclusion and mowing sites, Leymus chinensis and Stipa grandis both exhibited a higher light-saturation point and higher maximum photosynthetic rate than that at the grazing site, which increased photosynthesis and growth compared to those at the grazing site. In contrast, A. frigida possessed a higher nitrogen content than the other species, and more of the light energy used for photosynthesis, particularly at the grazing site., M. Liu, J. R. Gong, Y. Pan, Q. P. Luo, Z. W. Zhai, L. L. Yang, S. Xu., and Obsahuje bibliografii
a1_Chromolaena odorata is a widespread exotic weed in southern China and other regions of the world. To better understand its invasive strategies, we compared leaf pigment contents and gas-exchange traits of the invader with its two coexisting species (native Urena lobata and invasive Bidens pilosa) under combined conditions of irradiance (full, medium, and low) and nitrogen (full, medium, and low) supplies. The chlorophyll (Chl) a+b content of U. lobata was the highest and the Chl a/b ratio of C. odorata was the lowest among the three weed species. In most treatments, leaf pigment, light-saturated photosynthetic rate (P max), and light saturation point (LSP) of all the species increased, while their Chl a/b ratios decreased with the increasing nitrogen. The P max and LSP of U. lobata were greater than those of the coexisting weeds under full irradiance (FI), but significantly declined with the decreasing irradiance. The invasive weeds, especially C. odorata, showed lower P max and LSP under FI, but they showed slight decrease under low irradiance. Compared to U. lobata, C. odorata exhibited the lower light compensation point (LCP) in most treatments, higher LSP under low and medium irradiance, and lower dark respiration rate under FI. In addition, all the three species showed similar responses to different irradiance and nitrogen conditions, mean phenotypic plasticity index (MPPI) of most photosynthetic variables of the two invasive species was lower than that of U. lobata. These results suggested that C. odorata behaved as a facultative shadetolerant weed, being able to grow in moderately sheltered environments; the lower MPPI might be one of the important competitive strategies during its invasion. However, its invasion should be limited to some very shady habitats., a2_In the field, control should be mainly directed against populations growing in the open or nutrient-rich habitats, where its expansion speed could be much faster. Deep shade by intact canopies or luxuriant forests might be an effective barrier against its invasion., G. M. Quan, D. J. Mao, J. E. Zhang, J. F. Xie, H. Q. Xu, M. An., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
The crop sensitivity to ozone (O3) is affected by the timing of the O3 exposure, by the O3 concentration, and by the crop age. To determine the physiological response to the acute ozone stress, tomato plants were exposed to O3 at two growth stages. In Experiment I (Exp. I), O3 (500 μg m-3) was applied to 30-d-old plants (PL30). In Experiment II (Exp. II), three O3 concentrations (200, 350, and 500 μg m-3) were applied to 51-d-old plants (PL51). The time of the treatment was 4 h (7:30-11:30 h). Photosynthesis and chlorophyll fluorescence measurements were done 4 times (before the exposure; 20 min, 20 h, and 2-3 weeks after the end of the treatment) using a LI-COR 6400 photosynthesis meter. The stomatal pore area and stomatal conductance were reduced as the O3 concentration increased. Ozone induced the decrease in the photosynthetic parameters of tomato regardless of the plant age. Both the photosystem (PS) II operating efficiency and the maximum quantum efficiency of PSII photochemistry declined under the ozone stress suggesting that the PSII activity was inhibited by O3. The impaired PSII contributed to the reduced photosynthetic rate. The greater decline of photosynthetic parameters was found in the PL30 compared with the PL51. It proved the age-dependent ozone sensitivity of tomato, where the younger plants were more vulnerable. Ozone caused the degradation of photosynthetic apparatus, which affected the photosynthesis of tomato plants depending on the growth stage and the O3 concentration., A. A. Thwe, G. Vercambre, H. Gautier, F. Gay, J. Phattaralerphong, P. Kasemsap., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Abiotic stresses induce phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPC) expression in C3 plants which suggests PEPC function in plant adaptation to stresses. Here, we studied the response of photosynthesis to short-term drought stress in rice seedlings overexpressing C4 PEPC from maize and millet. The transgenic lines exhibited 1.2-5.5 fold of PEPC activities than the wild type before the treatment, while 1.5-8.5 fold after five or ten days of water deficit. Net photosynthetic rate (P N) declined less during the water stress and recovered more after rewatering in the transgenic lines. These changes were accompanied with changes in the stomatal conductance (g s). The lower decrease in P N and g s resulted in significantly higher intrinsic water use efficiency in the transgenic rice lines after ten days of water withdrawal. There were no significant differences between the wild type and transgenic lines in maximum photochemical efficiency of PSII and photochemical quenching. The nonphotochemical quenching and the quantum efficiency of PSII maintained both higher in transgenic lines than those in the wild type during drought stress. This indicated that the transgenic lines could dissipate more excess energy to heat to protect PSII. Our result suggested that the increased PEPC activities in rice could alleviate the decrease of photosynthesis during short-term drought stress., Z. S. Ding, X. F. Sun, S. H. Huang, B. Y. Zhou, M. Zhao., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
The effects of UV-B radiation (1 W m-2, 1 and 2 h) on PSII activity, chloroplast structure, and H2O2 contents in leaves of 26-d-old Arabidopsis thaliana phyA phyB double mutant (DMut) compared with the wild type (WT) were investigated. UV-B decreased PSII activity and affected the H2O2 content in WT and DMut plants grown under white light (WL). The chloroplast structure changes in DMut plants exposed to UV were more significant than that in WT. Reductions in maximal and real quantum photochemical yields and increase in the value of thermal dissipation of absorbed light energy per PSII RC and the amount of QB-nonreducing centers of PSII were bigger in mutant compared to WT plants grown both under WL and red light. Such difference in action of UV-B on WT and DMut can be explained by higher content of UV-absorbing pigments and carotenoids in WT leaves compared with DMut., V. D. Kreslavski, A. N. Shmarev, V. Yu. Lyubimov, G. A. Semenova, S. K. Zharmukhamedov, G. N. Shirshikova, A. Yu. Khudyakova, S. I. Allakhverdiev., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
WN6 (a stay-green wheat cultivar) and JM20 (control) were used to evaluate the effects of exogenous cytokinin on photosynthetic capacity and antioxidant enzymes activities in flag leaves. Results showed that WN6 reached the higher grain mass, which was mainly due to the higher photosynthetic rate resulting from the higher maximal quantum yield of PSII photochemistry (ΦPSII) and probability that a trapped exaction transfers an electron into the electron transport chain beyond QA (Ψo), and lower relative variable fluorescence intensity at the J-step (Vj). Exogenous 6-benzylaminopurine (6-BA) enhanced antioxidant enzymes activities and decreased malondialdehyde (MDA) content. Enhanced Ψo and electron transport rate (ETR), and decreased Vj contributed to improved photosynthetic rate in the 6-BA treatment. In addition, exogenous 6-BA significantly increased endogenous zeatin (Zt) content, which was significantly and positively correlated with the antioxidant enzyme activity and ΦPSII, implying that higher Zt content was responsible for the improved antioxidant status and photosynthetic performance., D. Q. Yang, Y. L. Luo, W. H. Dong, Y. P. Yin, Y. Li, Z. L. Wang., and Obsahuje bibliografii
A greenhouse study was performed in order to investigate the effects of three arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) species on vegetative growth, water relations, and mineral composition parameters of snapdragon (Antirrhinum majus cv. Bells white) under irrigation from different water sources. Five irrigation treatments included using purely desalinized (fresh) water (DW), as a control, three different blends of DW with saline ground water from a well with increasing salinity, and one with 100% of saline well water. Inoculation with AMF enhanced growth rates and a relative water content of snapdragon plants grown under well-water irrigation. AMF also improved the leaf water potential and increased water-use efficiency of the plants. Shoot and root dry masses were higher in the AMF-treated plants than those in AMF-free plants. In both shoots and roots, concentrations of total P, Ca2+, N, Mg2+, and K+ were higher in the AMF-treated plants compared with AMF-free plants under salt-stress conditions. Shoot Cl- and Na+ concentrations were lower in the AMF-treated plants than those in the AMF-free plants grown under well-water irrigation. Snapdragon plants exhibited a high degree of dependency on AMF; it improved plant growth rates and leaf water relations, particularly, with increasing salinity of irrigation water., Y. I. El-Nashar., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Soil moisture is the main limiting factor for vegetation growth at shell ridges in the Yellow River Delta of China. The objective of this study was to explore the soil moisture response of photosynthetic parameters and transpiration in Tamarix chinensis Lour., a dominant species of shell ridges. Leaf photosynthetic
light-response parameters and sap flow were measured across a gradient of relative soil water content (RWC), from drought (23%) to waterlogging (92%) conditions. Leaf photosynthetic efficiency and stem sap flow of T. chinensis showed a clear threshold response to soil moisture changes. Leaf net photosynthetic rate, water-use efficiency (WUE), light-saturation point, apparent quantum yield, maximum net photosynthetic rate, and dark respiration rate peaked at moderately high RWC, decreasing towards high and low values of RWC. However, peak or bottom RWC values substantially differed for various parameters. Excessively high or low RWC caused a significant reduction in the leaf photosynthetic capacity and WUE, while the high photosynthetic capacity and high WUE was obtained at RWC of 73%. With increasing waterlogging or drought stress, T. chinensis delayed the starting time for stem sap flow in the early morning and ended sap flow activity earlier during the day time in order to shorten a daily transpiration period and reduce the daily water consumption. The leaf photosynthetic capacity and WUE of T. chinensis were higher under drought stress than under waterlogging stress. Nevertheless, drought stress caused a larger reduction of daily water consumption compared to waterlogging, which was consistent with a higher drought tolerance and a poor tolerance to waterlogging in this species. This species was characterized by the low photosynthetic capacity and low WUE in the range of RWC between 44 and 92%. The RWC of 49-63% was the appropriate range of soil moisture for plant growth and efficient physiological water use of T. chinensis seedlings., J. B. Xia, Z. G. Zhao, J. K. Sun, J. T. Liu, Y. Y. Zhao., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The effect of UV-A radiation (365 nm) and the protective effect of preillumination with red light (RL, 664 nm, 10 min) or with a combination of red and far-red light (FRL, 727 nm, 10 min) on the activity of the PSII as well as the expression levels of selected genes, especially those encoding chloroplast proteins (sAPX, tAPX, CAB1, and D1), were studied in leaves of the 26-d-old hy3 mutant of Arabidopsis thaliana, which is deficient in the phytochrome B apoprotein. The effects were compared with corresponding effects observed in the hy2 mutant of A. thaliana, which is deficient in the phytochrome chromophore. Illumination with UV-A decreased the photosynthetic pigment content, the maximum photochemical quantum yield of PSII (Fv/Fm), and the effective quantum yield of PSII (ΦPSII). The reduction of the Fv/Fm ratio and ΦPSII was more pronounced in the mutants as compared to wild-type plants (WT). The preillumination of the leaves with RL caused a significant reduction in the inhibitory effect of UV-radiation on the PSII activity in the WT plants, but it caused only a small decrease in the hy3 mutant. The preillumination of leaves with RL and FRL combination compensated the protective effect of RL on the UV-induced decrease of the fluorescence parameters in the WT. Such reversibility is typical for involvement of red/far-red reversible phytochromes at low intensity light. The results suggest an important role of red/far-red reversible phytochromes (phytochrome B) in the resistance of PSII to UV-A radiation caused by changes in contents of either carotenoids or other UV-absorbing pigments probably through biosynthesis of these pigments. The data also demonstrated that phytochrome B and other phytochromes can affect the PSII stress resistance by the fast regulation of the expression of genes encoding antioxidant enzymes and transcription factors at the step of gene transcription., V. D. Kreslavski, F.-J. Schmitt, C. Keuer, T. Friedrich, G. N. Shirshikova, S. K. Zharmukhamedov, A. A. Kosobryukhov, S. I. Allakhverdiev., and Seznam literatury