Millennial timescale regeneration in a moss from Antarctica

Roads, Esme; Longton, R. E.; Convey, Peter

doi:10.1016/j.cub.2014.01.053

Cited by 75 publications

(61 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…While the simple morphological structure of mosses is largely conserved since at least 330 million years (Hubers and Kerp 2012), they colonize an extensive spectrum of diverse habitats (Turetsky 2003;Turetsky et al 2012). Their occurrence in many extreme habitats such as the Antarctic tundra and deserts implies the existence of many yet unknown moss-specific survival mechanisms (Oliver et al 2005;Roads et al 2014). The resilience of mosses could recently be demonstrated with the successful regeneration of subglacial bryophytes following 400 years of ice entombment (Farge et al 2013) and even by the regrowth of over 1500-year-old moss from the Antarctic permafrost (Roads et al 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Can mosses serve as model organisms for forest research?

Müller

Gütle

Jacquot

et al. 2016

Annals of Forest Science

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& Key message Based on their impact on many ecosystems, we review the relevance of mosses in research regarding stress tolerance, metabolism, and cell biology. We introduce the potential use of mosses as complementary model systems in molecular forest research, with an emphasis on the most developed model moss Physcomitrella patens. & Context and aims Mosses are important components of several ecosystems. The moss P. patens is a well-established nonvascular model plant with a high amenability to molecular biology techniques and was designated as a JGI plant flagship genome. In this review, we will provide an introduction to moss research and highlight the characteristics of P. patens and other mosses as a potential complementary model system for forest research. & Methods Starting with an introduction into general moss biology, we summarize the knowledge about moss physiology and differences to seed plants. We provide an overview of the current research areas utilizing mosses, pinpointing potential links to tree biology. To complement literature review, we discuss moss advantages and available resources regarding molecular biology techniques. & Results and conclusion During the last decade, many fundamental processes and cell mechanisms have been studied in mosses and seed plants, increasing our knowledge of plant evolution. Additionally, moss-specific mechanisms of stress tolerance are under investigation to understand their resilience in ecosystems. Thus, using the advantages of model mosses such as P. patens is of high interest for various research approaches, including stress tolerance, organelle biology, cell polarity, and secondary metabolism.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Can mosses serve as model organisms for forest research?

Müller

Gütle

Jacquot

et al. 2016

Annals of Forest Science

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“…Cryptobiosis has already been demonstrated for mosses in polar environments, based on in vivo observations 14 and in vitro regeneration experiments 14, 15 . Our data, based on fluorescence measurements, corroborate these previous studies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Regeneration, suggested by in vivo field observations, was recently demonstrated through in vitro growth from exhumed mosses re-exposed by glacier retreat after 400 years of burial by a cold-based glacier in Canada, demonstrating the totipotent capacity of bryophytes 14 . Millennial scale viability has been described from a core of an in situ moss bank in Antarctica preserved within permafrost that, after thawing in the laboratory, showed regeneration of moss shoots 15 . These studies were interpreted as cases of cryptobiosis, but did not involve direct measurements of moss metabolic vitality.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Mosses are poikilohydric organisms with high degree of phenotypic plasticity 18 and have well-developed features allowing them to tolerate stress 15 and thrive in environments subject to change and disturbance 16 . Among the key traits allowing mosses to persist in harsh environments, one of the most important is tolerance to desiccation and drought 18 , also contributing to their ability to resist freezing (as during the Antarctic winter) 19 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Moss survival through in situ cryptobiosis after six centuries of glacier burial

Cannone

Corinti

Malfasi

et al. 2017

Sci Rep

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Cryptobiosis is a reversible ametabolic state of life characterized by the ceasing of all metabolic processes, allowing survival of periods of intense adverse conditions. Here we show that 1) entire moss individuals, dated by 14C, survived through cryptobiosis during six centuries of cold-based glacier burial in Antarctica, 2) after re-exposure due to glacier retreat, instead of dying (due to high rates of respiration supporting repair processes), at least some of these mosses were able to return to a metabolically active state and remain alive. Moss survival was assessed through growth experiments and, for the first time, through vitality measurements. Future investigations on the genetic pathways involved in cryptobiosis and the subsequent recovery mechanisms will provide key information on their applicability to other systematic groups, with implications for fields as divergent as medicine, biodiversity conservation, agriculture and space exploration.

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“…Alternatively, bryophytes may be cryopreserved during glaciation with regeneration following glacial retreat, as recently observed, albeit over shorter periods of centuries to millennia, for Arctic and Antarctic mosses (Fig. 4) (La Farge et al 2013;Roads et al 2014). In a review of European Holocene bryophyte history, Kyrkjeeide et al (2014) found no cases of unambiguous evidence for in situ survival within the area of the Scandinavian ice sheet.…”

Section: Could Bryophytes Have Persisted In Situ?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Future directions and priorities for Arctic bryophyte research

et al. 2017

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The development of evidence-based international strategies for the conservation and management of Arctic ecosystems in the face of climate change is hindered by critical knowledge gaps in Arctic floristic diversity and evolution. Particularly poorly studied are the bryophytes, which dominate the vegetation across vast areas of the Arctic and consequently play an important role in global biogeochemical cycles. Currently, much of what is known about Arctic floristic evolution is based on studies of vascular plants. Bryophytes, however, possess a number of features, such as poikilohydry, totipotency, several reproductive strategies, and the ability to disperse through microscopic diaspores, that may cause their responses to Arctic environments to differ from those of the vascular plants. Here we discuss several priority areas identified in the Arctic Council's "Arctic Biodiversity Assessment" that are necessary to illuminate patterns of Arctic bryophyte evolution and diversity, including dispersal, glacial refugia, local adaptation, and ecological interactions with bryophyte-associated microbiomes. A survey of digitally available herbarium data archived in the largest online aggregate, GBIF, across the Arctic to boreal zones indicates that sampling coverage of mosses is heterogeneous and relatively sparse in the Arctic sensu stricto. A coordinated international effort across the Arctic will be necessary to address knowledge gaps in Arctic bryophyte diversity and evolution in the context of ongoing climate change.Key words: biodiversity, dispersal, local adaptation, microbiome, phylogeography.

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Millennial timescale regeneration in a moss from Antarctica

Cited by 75 publications

References 7 publications

Can mosses serve as model organisms for forest research?

Can mosses serve as model organisms for forest research?

Moss survival through in situ cryptobiosis after six centuries of glacier burial

Future directions and priorities for Arctic bryophyte research

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