Variation and adaptation in leaf sulfur content across China

Abstract

Aims Sulfur is an essential functional element in leaves, and it plays important roles in regulating plant growth, development, and abiotic stress resistance in natural communities. However, information on the spatial variation of leaf sulfur content (LSC) and adaptive character on a large community scale is limited. Methods Sulfur in the leaves of 2207 plant species from 80 widespread ecosystems (31 forests, 38 grasslands, and 11 deserts) in China were measured. One-way ANOVA with Duncan’s multiple-range tests were used to evaluate the differences in LSC among different plant growth forms (PGFs) and ecosystems. We fitted the relationships of LSC to spatial and climate factors using regression. Structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis and phylogenetic analysis helped us to further explore the main factors of LSC variation. Important Findings LSC ranged from 0.15 to 48.64 g kg –1, with an average of 2.13 ± 0.04 g kg –1 at the community scale in China. We observed significant spatial variation in LSC among different ecosystems and taxa. Overall, LSC was higher in arid areas and herbs. Furthermore, higher LSC was observed under drought environments, low temperatures, and intense ultraviolet radiation. Temperature, precipitation, radiation, soil sulfur content and aridity jointly regulated LSC, explaining 79% of the spatial variation. However, LSC was not significantly related to phylogeny. Our study demonstrated that LSC plays an important role in plant adaptation mechanisms to extreme environments and further expanded our understanding of the biological function of sulfur from the organ to the community level. This highlights the importance of sulfur metabolism for our understanding of the impact of global climate change on plants.

Biogeographic Patterns of Sulfur in the Vegetation of the Tibetan Plateau

“…The S contents and S densities of plants increased or decreased significantly with increasing longitude and altitude (Figure S1 in Supporting Information ), indicating that S was limited by the environmental conditions of natural terrestrial ecosystems. The patterns of plant variation with latitude and longitude tended to reflect the adaptation of plants to changes in temperature and precipitation (W. Z. Zhao, Xiao, Li, Xu, & He, 2022). S leaf and S root decreased with the increase of longitude and increased with the increase of altitude, but the SD leaf and SD root showed an opposite trend (Figure S1 in Supporting Information ).…”

“…S allocation strategies should give a more realistic picture of the state of nutrient limitation in nature and help explain the adaptation mechanisms of plants to their environment (W. Z. Zhao, Xiao, Li, Xu, Li, & He, 2022). For example, in an arid environment, plants tend to make full use of water and light and maximize the photosynthetic activity of the leaves, thus allowing the leaves to accumulate more S (Yan et al., 2016; W. Z. Zhao, Xiao, Li, Xu, & He, 2022). Long‐term adaptation to stressful environmental settings such as droughts and nutrient‐poor soils has led to a coordinated diversity of different plant organs in terms of nutrient use or acquisition (Y. Yang et al., 2018).…”

High precipitation rates increase potassium density in plant communities in the Tibetan Plateau

“…In the SEM analysis, the maximum likelihood estimate (MLE) was used to fit the data. The fit of the model was determined as follows: P > 0.05, ratio of cube to degrees of freedom (χ2/df) = 1 − 3, model fit (GIF) > 0.9, and root mean square error (RMSEA) < 0.08 37 . The biomass of trees and shrubs was calculated using the biomass equation.…”

Optimal Allocation Strategies of Plant Calcium on Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau

“…Therefore, plant nutrient status and utilization patterns can accurately predict survival strategies, growth rates, and productivity (Sterner & Elser, 2002; Zhang et al., 2019). Numerous studies have reported the characteristics of most macronutrients (for example, N, P, and K) to explore nutrient limitations and their links to ecosystem functions (Jiao et al., 2022; Li, Li, et al., 2022; Zhang, Guo, et al., 2021; Zhao, Xiao, Li, Xu, & He, 2022). However, little is known about the spatial pattern of the macronutrient calcium (Ca) and Ca‐related adaptation strategies, although Ca plays a vital role in maintaining plant cell structure (Hawkesford et al., 2012) and regulating physiological and biochemical processes as a signaling molecule (Lee & Seo, 2021).…”