Near-isogenic lines of maize varying in their genes for flavonoid biosynthesis were utilized to examine the effects of foliar flavonoids and nutrient deficiency on maximum net photosynthetic rate (P N ) and chlorophyll (Chl) fluorescence (F v /F m ) in response to ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation. Plants with deficient (30 to 70 % lower N, K, Mn, Fe, and Zn) and sufficient nutrients were exposed to four irradiation regimes: (1) no UV-B with solar photosynthetically active radiation (PAR), (2) two day shift to ambient artificial UV-B, 8.2-9.5 kJ m −2 d −1 (21-25 mmol m −2 d −1 ); (3) continuous ambient artificial UV-B; (4) continuous solar UV-B in Hawaii 12-18 kJ m −2 d −1 (32-47 mmol m −2 d −1 ). The natural ratio of UV-B : PAR (0.25-0.40) was maintained in the UV-B treatments. In the adequately fertilized plants, lines b and lc had higher contents of flavonoids and anthocyanins than did lines hi27 and dta. UV-B induced the accumulation of foliar flavonoids in lines hi27 and b, but not in the low flavonoid line dta or in the high flavonoid line lc. In plants grown on deficient relative to adequate nutrients, flavonoid and anthocyanin contents decreased by 30-40 and 40-50 %, respectively, and Chl a and Chl b contents decreased by 30 and 70 %, respectively. The UV-B treatments did not significantly affect P N and F v /F m in plants grown on sufficient nutrients, except in the low flavonoid lines dta and hi27 in which P N and F v /F m decreased by ~15 %. P N , F v /F m , and stomatal conductance decreased markedly (20-30 %) in all lines exposed to UV-B when grown on low nutrients. The decrease in F v /F m was 10 % less in higher flavonoid lines b and lc. The photosynthetic apparatus of maize readily tolerated ambient UV-B in the tropics when plants were adequately fertilized. In contrast, ambient UV-B combined with nutrient deficiency significantly reduced photosynthesis in this C 4 plant. Nutrient deficiency increased the susceptibility of maize to UV-B-induced photoinhibition in part by decreasing the contents of photoprotective compounds.

Hibiscus tiliaceus (Hau) is a pantropical mangrove associate that usually occurs in coastal ecosystems where substrate salinity is relatively high, but it also inhabits upland habitats in Hawaii. Cuttings from three populations on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, were collected and grown in the glasshouse under two levels of substrate salinity (0 and 335 mOsm kg-1) and three light treatments (0%, 50%, and 90% shade). Photosynthetic gas exchange, biomass allocation, and accumulation were studied in relation to salinity and light. Salinity reduced net CO2 assimilation in the upland population but had no effect or stimulated photosynthesis in the coastal populations, whereas increasing salinity decreased stomatal conductance in all populations and therefore increased water-use efficiency. The degree to which photosynthesis was inhibited by salinity was inversely proportional to the salinity of the source population, indicating a loss of salinity tolerance in upland plants. Light had a stronger effect on leaf area ratio (LAR) and leaf mass per area (LMA), whereas salinity had a stronger effect on leaf water content, internode length, and plant biomass. Salinity reduced total new biomass by 58%, 50%, and 34% in full sun, 50% shade, and 90% shade, respectively, but this response did not differ between populations. Salinity reduced the photosynthesis, but not growth, of upland plants because increased allocation to photosynthetic tissue increased LAR to compensate for inhibition of photosynthesis by salinity.

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