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Lehmann MM, Schuler P, Werner RA, Saurer M, Wiesenberg GLB, Cormier MA. Biochemical and biophysical drivers of the hydrogen isotopic composition of carbohydrates and acetogenic lipids. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eadl3591. [PMID: 38985863 PMCID: PMC11235168 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adl3591] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2023] [Accepted: 06/05/2024] [Indexed: 07/12/2024]
Abstract
The hydrogen isotopic composition (δ2H) of plant compounds is increasingly used as a hydroclimatic proxy; however, the interpretation of δ2H values is hampered by potential coeffecting biochemical and biophysical processes. Here, we studied δ2H values of water and carbohydrates in leaves and roots, and of leaf n-alkanes, in two distinct tobacco (Nicotiana sylvestris) experiments. Large differences in plant performance and biochemistry resulted from (a) soil fertilization with varying nitrogen (N) species ratios and (b) knockout-induced starch deficiency. We observed a strong 2H-enrichment in sugars and starch with a decreasing performance induced by increasing NO3-/NH4+ ratios and starch deficiency, as well as from leaves to roots. However, δ2H values of cellulose and n-alkanes were less affected. We show that relative concentrations of sugars and starch, interlinked with leaf gas exchange, shape δ2H values of carbohydrates. We thus provide insights into drivers of hydrogen isotopic composition of plant compounds and into the mechanistic modeling of plant cellulose δ2H values.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marco M Lehmann
- Forest Dynamics, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Zuercherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
- Forest Soils and Biogeochemistry, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Zuercherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Philipp Schuler
- Forest Dynamics, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Zuercherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
- School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Roland A Werner
- D-USYS-Department of Environmental Systems Science, ETH Zurich, Universitaetstrasse 2, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Matthias Saurer
- Forest Dynamics, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Zuercherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Guido L B Wiesenberg
- Department of Geography, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Marc-André Cormier
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3AN, UK
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Schuler P, Cormier M, Werner RA, Buchmann N, Gessler A, Vitali V, Saurer M, Lehmann MM. A high-temperature water vapor equilibration method to determine non-exchangeable hydrogen isotope ratios of sugar, starch and cellulose. PLANT, CELL & ENVIRONMENT 2022; 45:12-22. [PMID: 34564870 PMCID: PMC9291759 DOI: 10.1111/pce.14193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2021] [Revised: 09/16/2021] [Accepted: 09/21/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The analysis of the non-exchangeable hydrogen isotope ratio (δ2 Hne ) in carbohydrates is mostly limited to the structural component cellulose, while simple high-throughput methods for δ2 Hne values of non-structural carbohydrates (NSC) such as sugar and starch do not yet exist. Here, we tested if the hot vapor equilibration method originally developed for cellulose is applicable for NSC, verified by comparison with the traditional nitration method. We set up a detailed analytical protocol and applied the method to plant extracts of leaves from species with different photosynthetic pathways (i.e., C3 , C4 and CAM). δ2 Hne of commercial sugars and starch from different classes and sources, ranging from -157.8 to +6.4‰, were reproducibly analysed with precision between 0.2‰ and 7.7‰. Mean δ2 Hne values of sugar are lowest in C3 (-92.0‰), intermediate in C4 (-32.5‰) and highest in CAM plants (6.0‰), with NSC being 2 H-depleted compared to cellulose and sugar being generally more 2 H-enriched than starch. Our results suggest that our method can be used in future studies to disentangle 2 H-fractionation processes, for improving mechanistic δ2 Hne models for leaf and tree-ring cellulose and for further development of δ2 Hne in plant carbohydrates as a potential proxy for climate, hydrology, plant metabolism and physiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philipp Schuler
- Research Unit of Forest Dynamics, Research Group of Ecosystem EcologySwiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSLBirmensdorfSwitzerland
| | - Marc‐André Cormier
- Department of Earth Sciences, Research Group of Ocean BiogeochemistryUniversity of OxfordOxfordUK
| | - Roland A. Werner
- Department of Environmental Systems Science, Group of Grassland SciencesETH ZurichZürichSwitzerland
| | - Nina Buchmann
- Department of Environmental Systems Science, Group of Grassland SciencesETH ZurichZürichSwitzerland
| | - Arthur Gessler
- Research Unit of Forest Dynamics, Research Group of Ecosystem EcologySwiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSLBirmensdorfSwitzerland
- Department of Environmental Systems Science, Institute of Terrestrial EcosystemsETH ZurichZürichSwitzerland
| | - Valentina Vitali
- Research Unit of Forest Dynamics, Research Group of Ecosystem EcologySwiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSLBirmensdorfSwitzerland
| | - Matthias Saurer
- Research Unit of Forest Dynamics, Research Group of Ecosystem EcologySwiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSLBirmensdorfSwitzerland
| | - Marco M. Lehmann
- Research Unit of Forest Dynamics, Research Group of Ecosystem EcologySwiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSLBirmensdorfSwitzerland
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Liu J. Seasonality of the altitude effect on leaf wax n-alkane distributions, hydrogen and carbon isotopes along an arid transect in the Qinling Mountains. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2021; 778:146272. [PMID: 33725603 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.146272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2021] [Revised: 02/25/2021] [Accepted: 02/28/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Reconstructing paleoelevation allows the temporal evolution of biogeochemical processes and hydroclimate regimes to be understood and quantified. A dual-isotope biomarker of clumped hydrogen and carbon isotopes of leaf wax n-alkanes was recently proposed in humid tropical forests, and it was proven to be superior to a single-isotope proxy that was previously reported. However, it remains unknown whether the dual-isotope biomarker is suitable in arid conditions. The present study investigated leaf wax n-alkane distribution, hydrogen (δ2Hwax) and carbon (δ13Cwax) isotopes in terrestrial plants along an arid mountainous transect. We found that the effects of seasonality on n-alkane distribution, δ2Hwax and δ13Cwax were minimal for all species (p > 0.05), and that species-specific δ2Hwax values remained almost unchanged for most species, in contrast to δ13Cwax values. Significant correlations between altitude and δ2Hwax values (R2 = 0.54, 0.58, and 0.75 for spring, summer, and autumn, respectively), instead of δ13Cwax values (R2 = 0.08, 0.43, and 0.12 with p = 0.24, 0.01, and 0.19 for spring, summer, and autumn, respectively), were observed, suggesting that δ2Hwax values, but not δ13Cwax values, can be reliably used as a proxy for reconstructing paleoelevation in arid conditions. Therefore, it will be necessary to identify other proxies to supplement δ2Hwax values under a dual-isotope approach in future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jinzhao Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Loess and Quaternary Geology, Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an 710061, China; CAS Center for Excellence in Quaternary Science and Global Change, Xi'an 710061, China.
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Liu J, An Z, Lin G. Intra-leaf heterogeneities of hydrogen isotope compositions in leaf water and leaf wax of monocots and dicots. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2021; 770:145258. [PMID: 33513516 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.145258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2020] [Revised: 12/27/2020] [Accepted: 01/15/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Several recent studies showed that leaf wax n-alkane δ2H values (δ2Hwax) within a leaf were heterogeneous in a small number of species. It still remains unclear whether the heterogeneity of intra-leaf δ2Hwax values is general for various species, how δ2Hwax values vary spatially and temporally, and whether there is a common explanation for the intra-leaf δ2Hwax heterogeneity in higher plants. Here we compared the hydrogen isotope compositions of leaf wax and corresponding leaf water (δ2Hlw) across leaf sections among a variety of monocot and dicot plant species. There is significant and consistent heterogeneity for both δ2Hwax and δ2Hlw, i.e., base-to-tip 2H-enrichment for monocots (except Hemerocallis citrina, and Dactylis glomerata) whereas base-to-tip and center-to-edge increases in δ2Hwax and δ2Hlw for dicots. The consistent occurrence of variations of δ2Hlw and δ2Hwax values within a leaf imply that δ2Hwax values probably inherit point-to-pint from in-situ δ2Hlw values, and thus the intra-leaf δ2Hwax heterogeneity mainly results from the spatial pattern of intra-leaf δ2Hlw values associated with veinal structures between dicots and monocots. The general heterogeneity of intra-leaf δ2Hwax values further intensifies that it is necessarily needed for in-depth understanding leaf wax biomarker.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jinzhao Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Loess and Quaternary Geology, Institute of Earth Environment, CAS, Xi'an 710061, China; CAS Center for Excellence in Quaternary Science and Global Change, Xi'an 710061, China.
| | - Zhisheng An
- State Key Laboratory of Loess and Quaternary Geology, Institute of Earth Environment, CAS, Xi'an 710061, China
| | - Guanghui Lin
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Earth System Modeling, Department of Earth System Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
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Vogado NO, Winter K, Ubierna N, Farquhar GD, Cernusak LA. Directional change in leaf dry matter δ 13C during leaf development is widespread in C3 plants. ANNALS OF BOTANY 2020; 126:981-990. [PMID: 32577724 PMCID: PMC7596372 DOI: 10.1093/aob/mcaa114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2020] [Accepted: 06/17/2020] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND AIMS The stable carbon isotope ratio of leaf dry matter (δ 13Cp) is generally a reliable recorder of intrinsic water-use efficiency in C3 plants. Here, we investigated a previously reported pattern of developmental change in leaf δ 13Cp during leaf expansion, whereby emerging leaves are initially 13C-enriched compared to mature leaves on the same plant, with their δ 13Cp decreasing during leaf expansion until they eventually take on the δ 13Cp of other mature leaves. METHODS We compiled data to test whether the difference between mature and young leaf δ 13Cp differs between temperate and tropical species, or between deciduous and evergreen species. We also tested whether the developmental change in δ 13Cp is indicative of a concomitant change in intrinsic water-use efficiency. To gain further insight, we made online measurements of 13C discrimination (∆ 13C) in young and mature leaves. KEY RESULTS We found that the δ 13Cp difference between mature and young leaves was significantly larger for deciduous than for evergreen species (-2.1 ‰ vs. -1.4 ‰, respectively). Counter to expectation based on the change in δ 13Cp, intrinsic water-use efficiency did not decrease between young and mature leaves; rather, it did the opposite. The ratio of intercellular to ambient CO2 concentrations (ci/ca) was significantly higher in young than in mature leaves (0.86 vs. 0.72, respectively), corresponding to lower intrinsic water-use efficiency. Accordingly, instantaneous ∆ 13C was also higher in young than in mature leaves. Elevated ci/ca and ∆ 13C in young leaves resulted from a combination of low photosynthetic capacity and high day respiration rates. CONCLUSION The decline in leaf δ 13Cp during leaf expansion appears to reflect the addition of the expanding leaf's own 13C-depleted photosynthetic carbon to that imported from outside the leaf as the leaf develops. This mixing of carbon sources results in an unusual case of isotopic deception: less negative δ 13Cp in young leaves belies their low intrinsic water-use efficiency.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nara O Vogado
- Centre for Tropical Environmental and Sustainability Science, College of Science and Engineering, James Cook University, Cairns, Australia
| | - Klaus Winter
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Ancon, Republic of Panama
| | - Nerea Ubierna
- Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
| | - Graham D Farquhar
- Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
| | - Lucas A Cernusak
- Centre for Tropical Environmental and Sustainability Science, College of Science and Engineering, James Cook University, Cairns, Australia
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Zhu Z, Yin X, Song X, Wang B, Ma R, Zhao Y, Rani A, Wang Y, Yan Q, Jing S, Gessler A, Zhou Y. Leaf transition from heterotrophy to autotrophy is recorded in the intraleaf C, H and O isotope patterns of leaf organic matter. RAPID COMMUNICATIONS IN MASS SPECTROMETRY : RCM 2020; 34:e8840. [PMID: 32441059 DOI: 10.1002/rcm.8840] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2019] [Revised: 05/14/2020] [Accepted: 05/17/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
RATIONALE Quantitatively relating 13 C/12 C, 2 H/1 H and 18 O/16 O ratios of plant α-cellulose and 2 H/1 H of n-alkanes to environmental conditions and metabolic status should ideally be based on the leaf, the plant organ most sensitive to environmental change. The fact that leaf organic matter is composed of isotopically different heterotrophic and autotrophic components means that it is imperative that one be able to disentangle the relative heterotrophic and autotrophic contributions to leaf organic matter. METHODS We tackled this issue by two-dimensional sampling of leaf water and α-cellulose, and specific n-alkanes from greenhouse-grown immature and mature and field-grown mature banana leaves, taking advantage of their large areas and thick waxy layers. Leaf water, α-cellulose and n-alkane isotope ratios were then characterized using elemental analysis isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) or gas chromatography IRMS. A three-member (heterotrophy, autotrophy and photoheterotrophy) conceptual linear mixing model was then proposed for disentangling the relative contributions of the three trophic modes. RESULTS We discovered distinct spatial leaf water, α-cellulose and n-alkane isotope ratio patterns that varied with leaf developmental stages. We inferred from the conceptual model that, averaged over the leaf blade, only 20% of α-cellulose in banana leaf is autotrophically laid down in both greenhouse-grown and field-grown banana leaves, while approximately 60% and 100% of n-alkanes are produced autotrophically in greenhouse-grown and field-grown banana leaves, respectively. There exist distinct lateral (edge to midrib) gradients in autotrophic contributions of α-cellulose and n-alkanes. CONCLUSIONS Efforts to establish quantitative isotope-environment relationships should take into account the fact that the evaporative leaf water 18 O and 2 H enrichment signal recorded in autotrophically laid down α-cellulose is significantly diluted by the heterotrophically formed α-cellulose. The δ2 H value of field-grown mature banana leaf n-alkanes is much more sensitive than α-cellulose as a recorder of the growth environment. Quantitative isotope-environment relationship based on greenhouse-grown n-alkane δ2 H values may not be reliable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhenyu Zhu
- Isotopomics in Chemical Biology & Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Chemical Additives for Industry, School of Chemistry & Chemical Engineering, Shaanxi University of Science & Technology, Weiyang University Park, Xi'an, 710021, China
| | - Xijie Yin
- Laboratory of Marine & Coastal Geology, MNR Third Institute of Oceanology, 178 Daxue Road, Xiamen, 361005, China
| | - Xin Song
- School of Life and Marine Sciences, Shenzhen University, 3688 Nanhai Road, Shenzhen, 518060, China
| | - Bo Wang
- Isotopomics in Chemical Biology & Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Chemical Additives for Industry, School of Chemistry & Chemical Engineering, Shaanxi University of Science & Technology, Weiyang University Park, Xi'an, 710021, China
| | - Ran Ma
- Isotopomics in Chemical Biology & Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Chemical Additives for Industry, School of Chemistry & Chemical Engineering, Shaanxi University of Science & Technology, Weiyang University Park, Xi'an, 710021, China
| | - Yu Zhao
- Isotopomics in Chemical Biology & Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Chemical Additives for Industry, School of Chemistry & Chemical Engineering, Shaanxi University of Science & Technology, Weiyang University Park, Xi'an, 710021, China
| | - Andleeb Rani
- Isotopomics in Chemical Biology & Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Chemical Additives for Industry, School of Chemistry & Chemical Engineering, Shaanxi University of Science & Technology, Weiyang University Park, Xi'an, 710021, China
| | - Ying Wang
- Isotopomics in Chemical Biology & Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Chemical Additives for Industry, School of Chemistry & Chemical Engineering, Shaanxi University of Science & Technology, Weiyang University Park, Xi'an, 710021, China
| | - Qiulin Yan
- Isotopomics in Chemical Biology & Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Chemical Additives for Industry, School of Chemistry & Chemical Engineering, Shaanxi University of Science & Technology, Weiyang University Park, Xi'an, 710021, China
| | - Su Jing
- Laboratory of Marine & Coastal Geology, MNR Third Institute of Oceanology, 178 Daxue Road, Xiamen, 361005, China
| | - Arthur Gessler
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research, Birmensdorf, 8903, Switzerland
| | - Youping Zhou
- Isotopomics in Chemical Biology & Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Chemical Additives for Industry, School of Chemistry & Chemical Engineering, Shaanxi University of Science & Technology, Weiyang University Park, Xi'an, 710021, China
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Šantrůček J, Schreiber L, Macková J, Vráblová M, Květoň J, Macek P, Neuwirthová J. Partitioning of mesophyll conductance for CO 2 into intercellular and cellular components using carbon isotope composition of cuticles from opposite leaf sides. PHOTOSYNTHESIS RESEARCH 2019; 141:33-51. [PMID: 30806882 DOI: 10.1007/s11120-019-00628-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2018] [Accepted: 02/14/2019] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
We suggest a new technique for estimating the relative drawdown of CO2 concentration (c) in the intercellular air space (IAS) across hypostomatous leaves (expressed as the ratio cd/cb, where the indexes d and b denote the adaxial and abaxial edges, respectively, of IAS), based on the carbon isotope composition (δ13C) of leaf cuticular membranes (CMs), cuticular waxes (WXs) or epicuticular waxes (EWXs) isolated from opposite leaf sides. The relative drawdown in the intracellular liquid phase (i.e., the ratio cc/cbd, where cc and cbd stand for mean CO2 concentrations in chloroplasts and in the IAS), the fraction of intercellular resistance in the total mesophyll resistance (rIAS/rm), leaf thickness, and leaf mass per area (LMA) were also assessed. We show in a conceptual model that the upper (adaxial) side of a hypostomatous leaf should be enriched in 13C compared to the lower (abaxial) side. CM, WX, and/or EWX isolated from 40 hypostomatous C3 species were 13C depleted relative to bulk leaf tissue by 2.01-2.85‰. The difference in δ13C between the abaxial and adaxial leaf sides (δ13CAB - 13CAD, Δb-d), ranged from - 2.22 to + 0.71‰ (- 0.09 ± 0.54‰, mean ± SD) in CM and from - 7.95 to 0.89‰ (- 1.17 ± 1.40‰) in WX. In contrast, two tested amphistomatous species showed no significant Δb-d difference in WX. Δb-d correlated negatively with LMA and leaf thickness of hypostomatous leaves, which indicates that the mesophyll air space imposes a non-negligible resistance to CO2 diffusion. δ13C of EWX and 30-C aldehyde in WX reveal a stronger CO2 drawdown than bulk WX or CM. Mean values of cd/cb and cc/cbd were 0.90 ± 0.12 and 0.66 ± 0.11, respectively, across 14 investigated species in which wax was isolated and analyzed. The diffusion resistance of IAS contributed 20 ± 14% to total mesophyll resistance and reflects species-specific and environmentally-induced differences in leaf functional anatomy.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Šantrůček
- Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Branišovská 31, 37005, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic.
| | - L Schreiber
- Institute for Cellular & Molecular Botany - IZMB, University of Bonn, Kirschallee 1, 53115, Bonn, Germany
| | - J Macková
- Biology Centre ASCR, Institute of Soil Biology, Na Sádkách 702/7, 37005, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
| | - M Vráblová
- Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Branišovská 31, 37005, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
- Institute of Environmental Technology, VSB - Technical University of Ostrava, 17. listopadu 15, 70833, Ostrava, Czech Republic
| | - J Květoň
- Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Branišovská 31, 37005, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
- Institute of Experimental Botany, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, 16502, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - P Macek
- Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Branišovská 31, 37005, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
- Biology Centre ASCR, Institute of Soil Biology, Na Sádkách 702/7, 37005, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
| | - J Neuwirthová
- Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Branišovská 31, 37005, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
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Cormier MA, Werner RA, Leuenberger MC, Kahmen A. 2H-enrichment of cellulose and n-alkanes in heterotrophic plants. Oecologia 2019; 189:365-373. [DOI: 10.1007/s00442-019-04338-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2018] [Accepted: 01/11/2019] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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