Hope in Change: The Role of Root Plasticity in Crop Yield Stability

Topp, Christopher N.

doi:10.1104/pp.16.01257

Cited by 21 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…The early root protoxylem differentiation described after leaf wounding, which was highlighted as changes in protoxylem position that appeared closer to the root tip [10], was consistent with the early root protoxylem differentiation observed after treatment with methyl jasmonate (MeJA) [11]. Plasticity in root growth and architecture may be functional under water-limited environmental conditions [12], enhancing water absorption from the soil [13]. As expression of many wound-inducible genes is induced by dehydration [14] and JA level increases in tissues undergoing water stress [15], it is possible that leaf wounding activates dehydration signaling in roots leading to the expression of xylem phenotypic plasticity.…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 71%

Leaf-Wounding Long-Distance Signaling Targets AtCuAOβ Leading to Root Phenotypic Plasticity

Fraudentali

Rodrigues-Pousada

Tavladoraki

et al. 2020

Plants

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The Arabidopsis gene AtCuAOβ (At4g14940) encodes an apoplastic copper amine oxidase (CuAO) highly expressed in guard cells of leaves and flowers and in root vascular tissues, especially in protoxylem and metaxylem precursors, where its expression is strongly induced by the wound signal methyl jasmonate (MeJA). The hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) derived by the AtCuAOβ-driven oxidation of the substrate putrescine (Put), mediates the MeJA–induced early root protoxylem differentiation. Considering that early root protoxylem maturation was also induced by both exogenous Put and leaf wounding through a signaling pathway involving H2O2, in the present study we investigated the role of AtCuAOβ in the leaf wounding-induced early protoxylem differentiation in combination with Put treatment. Quantitative and tissue specific analysis of AtCuAOβ gene expression by RT-qPCR and promoter::green fluorescent protein-β-glucuronidase fusion analysis revealed that wounding of the cotiledonary leaf induced AtCuAOβ gene expression which was particularly evident in root vascular tissues. AtCuAOβ loss-of-function mutants were unresponsive to the injury, not showing altered phenotype upon wounding in comparison to wild type seedlings. Exogenous Put and wounding did not show synergy in inducing early root protoxylem maturation, suggesting their involvement in a shared signaling pathway.

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Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 71%

Leaf-Wounding Long-Distance Signaling Targets AtCuAOβ Leading to Root Phenotypic Plasticity

Fraudentali

Rodrigues-Pousada

Tavladoraki

et al. 2020

Plants

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“…Here, the cumulated f RWU for 30–60 cm depth (sum of the two soil water layers with measurements in 40 and 60 cm depth) consistently exceeded 45% for DoEs 10–27. Plants often optimise their root growth to prevailing environmental conditions in order to maximise the use of available resources (Topp, ; Rothfuss & Javaux, ). This directional growth of the root system, also known as root plasticity, could have been induced by the increasing difference of θ across the soil profile in reaction to the saturation from the bottom.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigating the root plasticity response of Centaurea jacea to soil water availability changes from isotopic analysis

et al. 2020

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Summary Root water uptake is a key ecohydrological process for which a physically based understanding has been developed in the past decades. However, due to methodological constraints, knowledge gaps remain about the plastic response of whole plant root systems to a rapidly changing environment. We designed a laboratory system for nondestructive monitoring of stable isotopic composition in plant transpiration of a herbaceous species (Centaurea jacea) and of soil water across depths, taking advantage of newly developed in situ methods. Daily root water uptake profiles were obtained using a statistical Bayesian multisource mixing model. Fast shifts in the isotopic composition of both soil and transpiration water could be observed with the setup and translated into dynamic and pronounced shifts of the root water uptake profile, even in well watered conditions. The incorporation of plant physiological and soil physical information into statistical modelling improved the model output. A simple exercise of water balance closure underlined the nonunique relationship between root water uptake profile on the one hand, and water content and root distribution profiles on the other, illustrating the continuous adaption of the plant water uptake as a function of its root hydraulic architecture and soil water availability during the experiment.

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“…Also, the circadian plasticity of root hydraulic conductance was found to contribute to the acclimation to water stress by increasing the root water uptake, thereby favoring growth and photosynthesis ( Caldeira et al, 2014 ). Furthermore, Topp (2016) commented that the most yield stable genotypes have the most plastic root traits (growth and architecture) among environments.…”

Section: Physiological Trait Plasticity Hierarchymentioning

confidence: 99%

To Produce or to Survive: How Plastic Is Your Crop Stress Physiology?

2017

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Abiotic stress causes major crop losses and is considered a greater challenge than biotic stress. Comparisons of the number of published articles and patents regarding these different types of stresses, and the number of commercially released crops designed to tolerate different types of stresses, revealed a huge gap in the bench-to-field transfer rate of abiotic stress-tolerant crops, as compared to crops designed to tolerate biotic stress. These differences underscore the complexity of abiotic stress-response mechanisms. Here, we suggest that breeding programs favoring yield-related quantitative physiological traits (QPTs; e.g., photosynthesis rate or stomatal conductance) have canalized those QPTs at their highest levels. This has affected the sensitivity of those QPTs to changing environmental conditions and those traits have become less plastic. We also suggest that breeding pressure has had an asymmetric impact on different QPTs, depending on their sensitivity to environmental conditions and their interactions with other QPTs. We demonstrate this asymmetric impact on the regulation of whole-plant water balance, showing how plastic membrane water content, stomatal conductance and leaf hydraulic conductance interact to canalize whole-organ water content. We suggest that a QPT’s plasticity is itself an important trait and that understanding this plasticity may help us to develop yield-optimized crops.

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Hope in Change: The Role of Root Plasticity in Crop Yield Stability

Cited by 21 publications

References 23 publications

Leaf-Wounding Long-Distance Signaling Targets AtCuAOβ Leading to Root Phenotypic Plasticity

Leaf-Wounding Long-Distance Signaling Targets AtCuAOβ Leading to Root Phenotypic Plasticity

Investigating the root plasticity response of Centaurea jacea to soil water availability changes from isotopic analysis

To Produce or to Survive: How Plastic Is Your Crop Stress Physiology?

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