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Wheat leaves embolized by water stress do not recover function upon rewatering
Citation
Johnson, KM and Jordan, GJ and Brodribb, TJ, Wheat leaves embolized by water stress do not recover function upon rewatering, Plant Cell and Environment, 41, (11) pp. 2704-2714. ISSN 0140-7791 (2018) [Refereed Article]
Copyright Statement
Copyright 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd
Abstract
New techniques now make it possible to precisely and accurately determine the failure threshold of the plant vascular system during water stress. This creates an opportunity to understand the vulnerability of species to drought, but first, it must be determined whether damage to leaf function associated with xylem cavitation is reparable or permanent. This question is particularly relevant in crop plants such as wheat, which may have the capacity to repair xylem embolism with positive root pressure. Using wheat (Triticum aestivum, Heron), we employed non‐invasive imaging to find the water potential causing 50% xylem embolism (-2.87 ± 0.52 MPa) in leaves. Replicate plants were water‐stressed to varying degrees to induce embolism ranging from minimal to substantial. Plants were then rewatered to determine the reversibility of xylem damage and photosynthetic inhibition in glasshouse conditions. Rewatering after drought‐induced xylem cavitation did not induce visible refilling of embolized xylem, and embolized leaves showed photosynthetic impairment upon rewatering. This impairment was significant even after only 10–20% of leaf veins were embolized, and leaves accumulating >20% embolism died upon rewatering in 7/10 individuals. Photosynthetic damage and hydraulic decline occurred concurrently as wheat leaves dehydrated, and leaf shrinkage during drying was the best predictor of photosynthetic recovery.
Item Details
| Item Type: | Refereed Article |
|---|---|
| Keywords: | cavitation, crop, drought, embolism, optical vulnerability technique, refilling, water stress, wheat, xylem |
| Research Division: | Biological Sciences |
| Research Group: | Plant biology |
| Research Field: | Plant physiology |
| Objective Division: | Environmental Policy, Climate Change and Natural Hazards |
| Objective Group: | Adaptation to climate change |
| Objective Field: | Climate change adaptation measures (excl. ecosystem) |
| UTAS Author: | Johnson, KM (Ms Kate Johnson) |
| UTAS Author: | Jordan, GJ (Professor Greg Jordan) |
| UTAS Author: | Brodribb, TJ (Professor Tim Brodribb) |
| ID Code: | 128906 |
| Year Published: | 2018 |
| Funding Support: | Australian Research Council (DP170100761) |
| Web of Science® Times Cited: | 22 |
| Deposited By: | Plant Science |
| Deposited On: | 2018-10-23 |
| Last Modified: | 2019-03-27 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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