The Ecological Water-Use Strategies of Succulent Plants

Ogburn, R. Matthew; Edwards, Erika J.

doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-380868-4.00004-1

Cited by 206 publications

(256 citation statements)

References 113 publications

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“…Armed with a protective skin, together with a range of adaptive strategies for acquiring and conserving water, as well as for avoiding or tolerating water stress, embryophytes now thrive in a wide range of desiccating environments (Ogburn and Edwards, 2010;Aroca et al, 2012;Delaux et al, 2012;Jones and Dolan, 2012;Obata and Fernie, 2012;Gaff and Oliver, 2013). Accordingly, cuticles from a broad range of species, and in various ecological and agricultural contexts, have been studied from the perspective of their role as the primary barrier to transpirational water loss.…”

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confidence: 99%

The Formation and Function of Plant Cuticles

2013

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The plant cuticle is an extracellular hydrophobic layer that covers the aerial epidermis of all land plants, providing protection against desiccation and external environmental stresses. The past decade has seen considerable progress in assembling models for the biosynthesis of its two major components, the polymer cutin and cuticular waxes. Most recently, two breakthroughs in the long-sought molecular bases of alkane formation and polyester synthesis have allowed construction of nearly complete biosynthetic pathways for both waxes and cutin. Concurrently, a complex regulatory network controlling the synthesis of the cuticle is emerging. It has also become clear that the physiological role of the cuticle extends well beyond its primary function as a transpiration barrier, playing important roles in processes ranging from development to interaction with microbes. Here, we review recent progress in the biochemistry and molecular biology of cuticle synthesis and function and highlight some of the major questions that will drive future research in this field.

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confidence: 99%

The Formation and Function of Plant Cuticles

2013

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“…High degrees of succulence are most often associated with a suite of other characteristics that together confer survival in water-limited environments. This "succulent syndrome" usually includes a shallow root system that permits rapid uptake of unpredictable precipitation; a thick, waxy cuticle that prevents excessive water loss; and Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM), an alternative photosynthetic pathway that allows plants to uptake atmospheric CO 2 at night when water loss is minimized (1). Although some 30 plant lineages have been classified as succulent, only a small subset of those are species-rich and ecologically important elements of arid and semiarid ecosystems worldwide.…”

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confidence: 99%

Contemporaneous and recent radiations of the world's major succulent plant lineages

Arakaki

Christin

Nyffeler

et al. 2011

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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The cacti are one of the most celebrated radiations of succulent plants. There has been much speculation about their age, but progress in dating cactus origins has been hindered by the lack of fossil data for cacti or their close relatives. Using a hybrid phylogenomic approach, we estimated that the cactus lineage diverged from its closest relatives ≈35 million years ago (Ma). However, major diversification events in cacti were more recent, with most species-rich clades originating in the late Miocene, ≈10-5 Ma. Diversification rates of several cactus lineages rival other estimates of extremely rapid speciation in plants. Major cactus radiations were contemporaneous with those of South African ice plants and North American agaves, revealing a simultaneous diversification of several of the world's major succulent plant lineages across multiple continents. This short geological time period also harbored the majority of origins of C 4 photosynthesis and the global rise of C 4 grasslands. A global expansion of arid environments during this time could have provided new ecological opportunity for both succulent and C 4 plant syndromes. Alternatively, recent work has identified a substantial decline in atmospheric CO 2 ≈15-8 Ma, which would have strongly favored C 4 evolution and expansion of C 4 -dominated grasslands. Lowered atmospheric CO 2 would also substantially exacerbate plant water stress in marginally arid environments, providing preadapted succulent plants with a sharp advantage in a broader set of ecological conditions and promoting their rapid diversification across the landscape.climate change | paleobotany | CAM photosynthesis P lants are generally classified as succulent when they exhibit pronounced water storage in one or more organs. High degrees of succulence are most often associated with a suite of other characteristics that together confer survival in water-limited environments. This "succulent syndrome" usually includes a shallow root system that permits rapid uptake of unpredictable precipitation; a thick, waxy cuticle that prevents excessive water loss; and Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM), an alternative photosynthetic pathway that allows plants to uptake atmospheric CO 2 at night when water loss is minimized (1). Although some 30 plant lineages have been classified as succulent, only a small subset of those are species-rich and ecologically important elements of arid and semiarid ecosystems worldwide. These lineages include the ice plants (Aizoaceae, ≈2,000 spp), the spurges (Euphorbia, ≈2,100 spp., ≈650 of which are succulent), the stonecrops (Crassulaceae, ≈1,400 spp.), the aloes (Aloe, ≈400 spp.), the agaves (Agave, ≈200 spp.), the stapeliads and asclepiads (Apocynaceae-Asclepiadoideae, ≈3,700 spp., ≈1,150 of which are succulent) and especially the cacti (Cactaceae, ≈1,850 spp.) (2).The cacti represent the most spectacular New World radiation of succulent plants. Most cacti exhibit a highly specialized life form, with extremely succulent, photosynthetic stems and leaves that have been mo...

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“…Here, we found that even though young cladodes showed the typical patterns of CAM plants, their low water-storage capacitance (water storage ability) was not sufficient to buffer the effects of drought stress when soil moisture is low. In contrast, CO 2 uptake is maintained in mature organs when they are exposed to prolonged drought because of their large capacitance that allows tissue water content to remain relatively high, even when soil water content was low (Griffiths et al 2008, Ogburn & Edwards 2010, Pimienta-Barrios et al 2000. Conversely, watering buffered the effects of drought on young cladodes, allowing them to sustain carbon gain in the dry spring season, playing the same role that succulence does on mature tissue of CAM plants (Mauseth 2006, Nobel 1995.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Succulence is an adaptive strategy that allows plants to remain active during seasonal water shortages (Eggli & Nyffeler 2009, Ogburn & Edwards 2010. It is considered one of the most efficient adaptations for maintaining carbon gain when CAM plants are exposed to prolonged drought (Griffiths et al 2008, Herrera 2009).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%