Ginkgo biloba and Helianthus annuus show different strategies to adjust photosynthesis, leaf water relations, and cell wall composition under water deficit stress

Abstract

Cell wall thickness (Tcw) determines photosynthesis and leaf elasticity. However, only a few studies in angiosperms addressed cell wall composition implication in regulating photosynthesis and leaf water relations through mesophyll conductance (gm) and bulk modulus of elasticity (ε) adjustments, respectively. Thus, we compared the phylogenetically distant Ginkgo biloba L. and Helianthus annuus L. under control and water deprivation to study the relationship between changes in cell wall composition (cellulose, hemicelluloses, and pectins) with gm and ε. Although no changes were found for Tcw, both species differently modified cell wall composition, resulting in different physiological consequences. H. annuus increased cellulose, hemicelluloses, and pectins in a similar proportion, maintaining ε. Additionally, it reduced photosynthesis due to stomatal closure. G. biloba did not decrease photosynthesis and largely increased hemicelluloses, leaf mass area, and leaf density, enhancing ε. Nonetheless, no association between cell wall composition and gm was found in either of the two species.

Genotype‐dependent changes of cell wall composition influence physiological traits of a long and a non‐long shelf‐life tomato genotypes under distinct water regimes

“…Although both genotypes presented similar reductions in π o under water shortage conditions, elastic modifications were of higher relevance in the LSL genotype (Figure 1 ). In fact, ε adjustments occurring under water deficit stress are variable (see, for instance, Sobrado & Turner, 1983 ; Lo Gullo & Salleo, 1988 ; Nadal et al., 2020 ; Roig‐Oliver, Bresta, Nadal, et al., 2020 ; Roig‐Oliver, Nadal, Bota, et al., 2020 ; Roig‐Oliver, Nadal, Clemente‐Moreno, et al., 2020 ; Roig‐Oliver, Fullana‐Pericàs, et al., 2021 ), suggesting that they could be species‐dependent. Furthermore, Galmés et al.…”

“…An extended experimental design of the previous experiment showed that pectins and hemicelluloses were significantly modified after only 5 and 24 h of rewatering, respectively, preceded by a long‐term water deprivation (Roig‐Oliver, Bresta, et al., 2021 ). Together with the results observed in other species, it has been proposed that changes in cell wall composition of mature leaves during abiotic stresses application could regulate g m and/or ε adjustments in a species‐dependent way (Clemente‐Moreno et al., 2019 ; Roig‐Oliver, Bresta, et al., 2021 ; Roig‐Oliver, Fullana‐Pericàs, et al., 2021 ; Roig‐Oliver, Bresta, Nadal, et al., 2020 ; Roig‐Oliver, Nadal, Bota, et al., 2020 ; Roig‐Oliver, Nadal, Clemente‐Moreno, et al., 2020 ). Interestingly, here we show that the role of the cell wall composition in determining these functional traits differs even between different genotypes of the same species.…”

“…Recent studies have shown that modifications in cell wall composition determined photosynthesis performance, leaf water relations, and/or anatomical adjustments in different species subjected to contrasting abiotic conditions such as water deprivation (Clemente‐Moreno et al., 2019 ; Roig‐Oliver, Bresta, et al., 2021 ; Roig‐Oliver, Fullana‐Pericàs, et al., 2021 ; Roig‐Oliver, Bresta, Nadal, et al., 2020 ; Roig‐Oliver, Nadal, Bota, et al., 2020 ; Roig‐Oliver, Nadal, Clemente‐Moreno, et al., 2020 ). From these studies, it appears that each species presented changes in g m , ε, and cell wall thickness ( T cw ), which were differently related to modifications in specific cell wall components, suggesting that these relationships could be species‐specific (Flexas et al., 2021 ).…”

“…However, grasses present a very characteristic cell wall composition within angiosperms (Carpita, 1996 ; Carpita & McCann, 2002 ), which makes their results difficult to extrapolate to other species. Since water deprivation affects cell wall composition (Clemente‐Moreno et al., 2019 ; Nadal et al., 2020 ; Roig‐Oliver, Bresta, Nadal, et al., 2020 ; Roig‐Oliver, Nadal, Bota, et al., 2020 ; Roig‐Oliver, Nadal, Clemente‐Moreno, et al., 2020 ; Roig‐Oliver, Bresta, et al., 2021 ; Roig‐Oliver, Fullana‐Pericàs, et al., 2021 ; Rui & Dinneny, 2019 ; Sweet et al., 1999 ; Tenhaken, 2015 ) and induces changes in photosynthesis, leaf water relations, and anatomical characteristics even at the genotype level (Fullana‐Pericàs et al., 2017 , 2019 ; Galmés et al., 2011 , 2013 ), we tested a tomato LSL and a nLSL genotype subjected to distinct levels of water shortage. Additionally, a recovery treatment was applied to separate the commonly proportional responses of g s and g m (Flexas et al., 2013 ).…”

Tolerance of Plant Cell Wall to Environment

“…It has been shown that even a slight drought (up to 12 days) caused an increase in lignin precursors (coumaric and caffeic acids) in xylem maize juice, and this was due to a decrease in anionic peroxidase activity, indicating the effect of drought on lignin biosynthesis [49]. Roig-Oliver et al showed for the first time that during long-term water deficiency, changes in the content of lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose in the cell walls of Helianthus annuus were accompanied by a significant decrease in phenols associated with the wall (coumaric, ferulic and caffeic acids) and with a negative correlation with photosynthesis (conductivity of the mesophyll to CO 2 ), and with a positive correlation with palisade mesophyll thickness [52,53].…”