Aridity promotes differences in proline and phytohormone levels in Pinus pinaster populations from contrasting environments

Abstract

We analysed proline, abscisic acid, (ABA), jasmonic acid (JA), indole acetic acid (IAA) and salicylic acid (SA) accumulation after summer drought at two Pinus pinaster provenance-progeny trial sites. The aim of the study was to evaluate P. pinaster phenotypic plasticity and intraspecific variation in the endogenous concentrations of these metabolites and to determine the best stress indicators for family and population discrimination. The environmental effect was remarkable, as striking differences between the sites were obtained for all indicators except for SA, which was unaffected by the environmental conditions. The levels of proline, ABA and IAA were higher in the xeric than in the mesic site. In contrast, JA was higher in the mesic site. The higher variation displayed at the family level led to family differences for all parameters and sites. Differences in proline and ABA between populations were exclusively found in the xeric site, where the population from the wet climate showed higher accumulation. This study provides evidence for differentiation among P. pinaster populations and families in their plastic responses to drought and highlights the importance of considering intraspecific variability when evaluating biochemical stress indicators in environmental studies.

MÉTODOS DE RESGATE E IDADES CRONOLÓGICAS DE PLANTAS-MATRIZES NO ENRAIZAMENTO DE BROTAÇÕES EPICÓRMICAS DE <i>Ilex paraguariensis</i>

“…de AIA endógeno em brotações juvenis e sua influência sobre a resistência a estresses ambientais, ampliando os índices de enraizamento de propágulos em espécies arbóreas (CORCUERA et al, 2012). Apesar da baixa emissão de brotações epicórmicas em árvores com 80 anos, estas apresentaram 47,5% de enraizamento, 10,3 raízes por estaca e 1,6 cm de comprimento de raízes para as técnicas de decepa no verão.…”

Biochemical and physiological analysis of zinc tolerance in Jatropha curca

“…Proline too is a well documented osmolyte involved in abiotic stress tolerance including heavy metal stress (Chandra et al, 2012;Corcuera et al, 2012;Diaz et al, 2014;Pandey & Gupta, 2015). Elevated levels of proline during stress conditions could be a result of increased catabolism of the phenolic compounds (Hamid et al, 2010).…”

Metabolic and physiological responses of Mediterranean high‐mountain and alpine plants to combined abiotic stresses

“…Monitoring plant fitness and other functional features that allow adaptation and survival of plants in high‐mountain environments has contributed to proposing a number of potential physiological stress indicators. These can be very useful and valuable for different questions, such as evaluating the effects of extreme temperatures, drought and irradiance or anthropogenic disturbance on plant fitness (Corcuera et al , Wen and Chen ).…”

“…Carbon isotope (δ 13 C) and Pro content have been proposed as drought and temperature stress indicators in different plant species, given their link to water‐use efficiency and osmotic adjustment, respectively (Farquhar et al , Corcuera et al , Hayat et al ). In alpine species, studies in juniper needles reported a significant negative correlation among δ 13 C and Pro accumulation with soil water content and rainfall (Wen and Chen ).…”