Physiology of ecotypic plant response to sulfur dioxide in Geranium carolinianum L

Photosynthesis, carbon allocation, and growth of sulfur dioxide ecotypes ofGeranium carolinianum L

This study investigated ways in which genetically determined differences in SO₂ susceptibility resulting from ecotypic differentiation inGeranium carolinianum were expressed physiologically. The SO₂-resistant and SO₂-sensitive ecotypes were exposed to a combination of short- and long-term SO₂ exposures to evaluate the responses of photosynthesis, H₂S efflux from foliage (sulfur detoxification), photoassimilate retention, leaf-diffusive resistance to CO₂, and growth. When exposed to SO₂, both ecotypes re-emit sulfur in a volatile, reduced form, presumably as H₂S. Because H₂S efflux rates at various SO₂ concentrations were comparable between ecotypes, genetic differences inG. carolinianum could not be attributed to a re-emission of excess sulfur as H₂S. Incipient SO₂ effects on photosynthesis were observed as cumulative SO₂ flux into the leaf interior excecded 0.40 nmol·m^-2 in the resistant ecotype and 0.26 nmol·m^-2 in the sensitive ecotype. Although initial SO₂-induced changes in photosynthesis in both ecotypes were mediated through an increase in stomatal resistance to CO₂, the ecotype-specific patterns as a function of pollutant concentration and exposure time were associated with marked increases in residual resistance to CO₂. Patterns in photosynthesis, photoassimilate retention, and growth following long-term SO₂ exposures were also ecotype-specific. Although physiological accommodation of SO₂ stress was observed in both ecotypes, it was more pronounced in the resistant ecotype. The physiological mechanisms underlying genetic differences inG. carolinianum in response to SO₂ stress were concluded to be (1) dissimilar threshold levels of response to SO₂ and/or its toxic derivatives and (2) differences in homeostatic processes governing the rate of repair or compensation for physiological injury.