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Ergon Å, Amdahl H. Winter survival in red clover: experimental evidence for interactions among stresses. BMC PLANT BIOLOGY 2024; 24:467. [PMID: 38807057 PMCID: PMC11131274 DOI: 10.1186/s12870-024-05167-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2023] [Accepted: 05/17/2024] [Indexed: 05/30/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND There is a lack of knowledge on the combined effects of different stresses on plants, in particular different stresses that occur during winter in temperate climates. Perennial herbaceous plants in temperate regions are exposed to many different stresses during winter, but except for the fact that cold temperatures induce resistance to a number of them, very little is known about their interaction effects. Knowledge about stress interactions is needed in order to predict effects of climate change on both agricultural production and natural ecosystems, and to develop adaptation strategies, e.g., through plant breeding. Here, we conducted a series of experiments under controlled conditions to study the interactions between cold (low positive temperature), clover rot infection (caused by Sclerotinia trifoliorum) and freezing, in red clover (Trifolium pratense) accessions. We also compared our results with winter survival in field experiments and studied associations between stress and shoot growth. RESULTS Exposure to low positive temperatures (cold acclimation) induced resistance to clover rot. There was a clear negative interaction effect between freezing stress and clover rot infection, resulting in up to 37% lower survival rate compared to what would have been expected from the additive effect of freezing and infection alone. Freezing tolerance could continue to improve during incubation under artificial snow cover at 3 °C in spite of darkness, and we observed compensatory shoot growth following freezing after prolonged incubation. At the accession level, resistance to clover rot was negatively correlated with growth in the field during the previous year at a Norwegian location. It was also negatively correlated with the shoot regrowth of control plants after incubation. Clover rot resistance tests under controlled conditions showed limited correlation with clover rot resistance observed in the field, suggesting that they may reveal variation in more specific resistance mechanisms. CONCLUSIONS We here demonstrate, for the first time, a strong negative interaction between freezing and infection with a winter pathogen. We also characterize the effects of cold acclimation and incubation in darkness at different temperatures on winter stress tolerance, and present data that support the notion that annual cycles of growth and stress resistance are associated at the genetic level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Åshild Ergon
- Faculty of Biosciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, P.O. Box 5003, Ås, N-1432, Norway.
| | - Helga Amdahl
- Graminor AS, Hommelstadvegen 60, Ridabu, 2322, Norway
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Barkaoui K, Volaire F. Drought survival and recovery in grasses: Stress intensity and plant-plant interactions impact plant dehydration tolerance. PLANT, CELL & ENVIRONMENT 2023; 46:1489-1503. [PMID: 36655754 DOI: 10.1111/pce.14543] [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: 07/22/2022] [Revised: 01/07/2023] [Accepted: 01/16/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Plant dehydration tolerance confers drought survival in grasses, but the mortality thresholds according to soil water content (SWC), vapour pressure deficit (VPD) and plant-plant interactions are little explored. We compared the dehydration dynamics of leaf meristems, which are the key surviving organs, plant mortality, and recovery of Mediterranean and temperate populations of two perennial grass species, Dactylis glomerata and Festuca arundinacea, grown in monocultures and mixtures under a low-VPD (1.5 kPa) versus a high-VPD drought (2.2 kPa). The lethal drought index (LD50 ), that is, SWC associated with 50% plant mortality, ranged from 2.87% (ψs = -1.68 MPa) to 2.19% (ψs = -4.47 MPa) and reached the lowest values under the low-VPD drought. Populations of D. glomerata were more dehydration-tolerant (lower LD50 ), survived and recovered better than F. arundinacea populations. Plant-plant interactions modified dehydration tolerance and improved post-drought recovery in mixtures compared with monocultures. Water content as low as 20.7%-36.1% in leaf meristems allowed 50% of plants to survive. We conclude that meristem dehydration causes plant mortality and that drought acclimation can increase dehydration tolerance. Genetic diversity, acclimation and plant-plant interactions are essential sources of dehydration tolerance variability to consider when predicting drought-induced mortality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karim Barkaoui
- CIRAD, UMR ABSys, F-34398 Montpellier, France
- ABSys, Univ Montpellier, CIHEAM-IAMM, CIRAD, INRAE, Institut Agro, Montpellier, France
| | - Florence Volaire
- CEFE, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, INRAE, Montpellier, France
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3
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Volaire F, Barkaoui K, Grémillet D, Charrier G, Dangles O, Lamarque LJ, Martin-StPaul N, Chuine I. Is a seasonally reduced growth potential a convergent strategy to survive drought and frost in plants? ANNALS OF BOTANY 2023; 131:245-254. [PMID: 36567631 PMCID: PMC9992932 DOI: 10.1093/aob/mcac153] [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: 04/29/2022] [Accepted: 12/14/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Plants have adapted to survive seasonal life-threatening frost and drought. However, the timing and frequency of such events are impacted by climate change, jeopardizing plant survival. Understanding better the strategies of survival to dehydration stress is therefore timely and can be enhanced by the cross-fertilization of research between disciplines (ecology, physiology), models (woody, herbaceous species) and types of stress (drought, frost). SCOPE We build upon the 'growth-stress survival' trade-off, which underpins the identification of global plant strategies across environments along a 'fast-slow' economics spectrum. Although phenological adaptations such as dormancy are crucial to survive stress, plant global strategies along the fast-slow economic spectrum rarely integrate growth variations across seasons. We argue that the growth-stress survival trade-off can be a useful framework to identify convergent plant ecophysiological strategies to survive both frost and drought. We review evidence that reduced physiological activity, embolism resistance and dehydration tolerance of meristematic tissues are interdependent strategies that determine thresholds of mortality among plants under severe frost and drought. We show that complete dormancy, i.e. programmed growth cessation, before stress occurrence, minimizes water flows and maximizes dehydration tolerance during seasonal life-threatening stresses. We propose that incomplete dormancy, i.e. the programmed reduction of growth potential during the harshest seasons, could be an overlooked but major adaptation across plants. Quantifying stress survival in a range of non-dormant versus winter- or summer-dormant plants, should reveal to what extent incomplete to complete dormancy could represent a proxy for dehydration tolerance and stress survival. CONCLUSIONS Our review of the strategies involved in dehydration stress survival suggests that winter and summer dormancy are insufficiently acknowledged as plant ecological strategies. Incorporating a seasonal fast-slow economics spectrum into global plant strategies improves our understanding of plant resilience to seasonal stress and refines our prevision of plant adaptation to extreme climatic events.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florence Volaire
- CEFE, Université Montpellier, INRAE, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, F-34090 Montpellier, France
| | - Karim Barkaoui
- CIRAD, UMR ABSys, F-34398 Montpellier, France
- ABSys, Université F-34060 Montpellier, CIHEAM-IAMM, CIRAD, INRAE, Institut Agro, Montpellier, France
| | - David Grémillet
- CEFE, Université Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, F-34090 Montpellier, France
- Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa
| | - Guillaume Charrier
- Université Clermont Auvergne, INRAE, PIAF, F-63000 Clermont Ferrand, France
| | - Olivier Dangles
- CEFE, Université Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, F-34090 Montpellier, France
| | - Laurent J Lamarque
- Département des Sciences de l’Environnement, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, Trois-Rivières, QC, G9A 5H7, Canada
| | - Nicolas Martin-StPaul
- INRAE, URFM, Domaine Saint Paul, Centre de recherche PACA, 228 route de l’Aérodrome, CS 40509, Domaine Saint-Paul, Site Agroparc, France
| | - Isabelle Chuine
- CEFE, Université Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, F-34090 Montpellier, France
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4
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Growth-survival trade-offs and the restoration of non-forested open ecosystems. Glob Ecol Conserv 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2023.e02383] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
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5
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Bushey JA, Hoffman AM, Gleason SM, Smith MD, Ocheltree TW. Water limitation reveals local adaptation and plasticity in the drought tolerance strategies of
Bouteloua gracilis. Ecosphere 2023. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.4335] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Julie A. Bushey
- Western Ecosystems Technology, Inc. Cheyenne Wyoming USA
- Water Management and Systems Research Unit, Agricultural Research Service United States Department of Agriculture Fort Collins Colorado USA
- Department of Forest and Rangeland Stewardship, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology Colorado State University Fort Collins Colorado USA
| | - Ava M. Hoffman
- Department of Biostatistics Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center Seattle Washington USA
- Department of Biology, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology Colorado State University Fort Collins Colorado USA
| | - Sean M. Gleason
- Water Management and Systems Research Unit, Agricultural Research Service United States Department of Agriculture Fort Collins Colorado USA
| | - Melinda D. Smith
- Department of Biology, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology Colorado State University Fort Collins Colorado USA
| | - Troy W. Ocheltree
- Department of Forest and Rangeland Stewardship, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology Colorado State University Fort Collins Colorado USA
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6
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Fletcher LR, Scoffoni C, Farrell C, Buckley TN, Pellegrini M, Sack L. Testing the association of relative growth rate and adaptation to climate across natural ecotypes of Arabidopsis. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2022; 236:413-432. [PMID: 35811421 DOI: 10.1111/nph.18369] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2022] [Accepted: 06/28/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Ecophysiologists have reported a range of relationships, including intrinsic trade-offs across and within species between plant relative growth rate in high resource conditions (RGR) vs adaptation to tolerate cold or arid climates, arising from trait-based mechanisms. Few studies have considered ecotypes within a species, in which the lack of a trade-off would contribute to a wide species range and resilience to climate change. For 15 ecotypes of Arabidopsis thaliana in a common garden we tested for associations between RGR vs adaptation to cold or dry native climates and assessed hypotheses for its mediation by 15 functional traits. Ecotypes native to warmer, drier climates had higher leaf density, leaf mass per area, root mass fraction, nitrogen per leaf area and carbon isotope ratio, and lower osmotic potential at full turgor. Relative growth rate was statistically independent of the climate of the ecotype native range and of individual functional traits. The decoupling of RGR and cold or drought adaptation in Arabidopsis is consistent with multiple stress resistance and avoidance mechanisms for ecotypic climate adaptation and would contribute to the species' wide geographic range and resilience as the climate changes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leila R Fletcher
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
- School of the Environment, Yale University, New Haven, CT, 06511, USA
| | - Christine Scoffoni
- Department of Biological Sciences, California State University, Los Angeles, CA, 90032, USA
| | - Colin Farrell
- Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Thomas N Buckley
- Department of Plant Sciences, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, University of California, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
| | - Matteo Pellegrini
- Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Lawren Sack
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
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Clauw P, Kerdaffrec E, Gunis J, Reichardt-Gomez I, Nizhynska V, Koemeda S, Jez J, Nordborg M. Locally adaptive temperature response of vegetative growth in Arabidopsis thaliana. eLife 2022; 11:77913. [PMID: 35904422 PMCID: PMC9337855 DOI: 10.7554/elife.77913] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2022] [Accepted: 07/13/2022] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
We investigated early vegetative growth of natural Arabidopsis thaliana accessions in cold, nonfreezing temperatures, similar to temperatures these plants naturally encounter in fall at northern latitudes. We found that accessions from northern latitudes produced larger seedlings than accessions from southern latitudes, partly as a result of larger seed size. However, their subsequent vegetative growth when exposed to colder temperatures was slower. The difference was too large to be explained by random population differentiation, and is thus suggestive of local adaptation, a notion that is further supported by substantial transcriptome and metabolome changes in northern accessions. We hypothesize that the reduced growth of northern accessions is an adaptive response and a consequence of reallocating resources toward cold acclimation and winter survival.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pieter Clauw
- Gregor Mendel Institute of Molecular Plant Biology, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna BioCenter, Vienna, Austria
| | - Envel Kerdaffrec
- Department of Biology, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland
| | - Joanna Gunis
- Gregor Mendel Institute of Molecular Plant Biology, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna BioCenter, Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Viktoria Nizhynska
- Gregor Mendel Institute of Molecular Plant Biology, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna BioCenter, Vienna, Austria
| | - Stefanie Koemeda
- Plant Sciences Facility, Vienna BioCenter Core Facilities GmbH, Vienna, Austria
| | - Jakub Jez
- Plant Sciences Facility, Vienna BioCenter Core Facilities GmbH, Vienna, Austria
| | - Magnus Nordborg
- Gregor Mendel Institute of Molecular Plant Biology, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna BioCenter, Vienna, Austria
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Dietrich P, Schumacher J, Eisenhauer N, Roscher C. Eco-evolutionary dynamics modulate plant responses to global change depending on plant diversity and species identity. eLife 2022; 11:74054. [PMID: 35353037 PMCID: PMC9110027 DOI: 10.7554/elife.74054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2021] [Accepted: 03/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Global change has dramatic impacts on grassland diversity. However, little is known about how fast species can adapt to diversity loss and how this affects their responses to global change. Here, we performed a common garden experiment testing whether plant responses to global change are influenced by their selection history and the conditioning history of soil at different plant diversity levels. Using seeds of four grass species and soil samples from a 14-year-old biodiversity experiment, we grew the offspring of the plants either in their own soil or in soil of a different community, and exposed them either to drought, increased nitrogen input, or a combination of both. Under nitrogen addition, offspring of plants selected at high diversity produced more biomass than those selected at low diversity, while drought neutralized differences in biomass production. Moreover, under the influence of global change drivers, soil history, and to a lesser extent plant history, had species-specific effects on trait expression. Our results show that plant diversity modulates plant-soil interactions and growth strategies of plants, which in turn affects plant eco-evolutionary pathways. How this change affects species' response to global change and whether this can cause a feedback loop should be investigated in more detail in future studies. Over the last hundred years, human activities including burning of fossil fuels, clearing of forests, and fertilizer use have caused environmental changes that have resulted in many species of plants, animals and other forms of life becoming extinct. Loss of plant species can change the local environment by, for example, altering the availability of nutrients and local communities of microbes in the soil. This may, in turn, cause remaining plant species to develop differently: they may take up fewer resources or become more prone to pathogens, both of which may alter their physical appearance. However, little is known about whether this happens and, if so, how rapidly such changes occur. Since 2002, researchers in Germany have been running a long-term project known as the Jena Experiment to study how plants behave when they grow in communities with different numbers of other plant species. For the experiment, various species of grass and other plants commonly found in grasslands were grown together in different combinations. Some plots contained many species (referred to as “high diversity”) and others contained only a few (“low diversity”). Here, Dietrich et al. collected seeds from four grasses grown for 12 years in Jena Experiment plots with two or six plant species. The seeds were then transferred to pots and grown in a greenhouse using soil either from the plot where the seeds originated or from another plot with a different diversity level. To simulate human-made changes in the environment, the team added nitrogen fertilizer or decreased how much they watered some of the plants. The greenhouse experiment showed that after receiving nitrogen fertilizer, the seeds from the high diversity Jena Experiment plots grew into larger plants than the seeds from the low diversity plots. But there was no difference in size when the plants were watered less. Moreover, both fertilizer and watering treatment had different effects on the plants’ physical appearance (root and leaf architecture) depending on the soil in which they were growing in. The findings of Dietrich et al. suggest that plants may respond differently to changes in their environment based on their origins and the soil they are growing in. This study provides the first indication that species loss could accelerate a further loss of species due to changes in how the plants develop and the communities of organisms living in the soil.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter Dietrich
- Department of Physiological Diversity, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Jens Schumacher
- Institute of Mathematics, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Jena, Germany
| | - Nico Eisenhauer
- Experimental Interaction Ecology, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), Halle-Jena-Leipzig,, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Christiane Roscher
- Department of Physiological Diversity, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, Leipzig, Germany
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9
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Estarague A, Vasseur F, Sartori K, Bastias CC, Cornet D, Rouan L, Beurier G, Exposito-Alonso M, Herbette S, Bresson J, Vile D, Violle C. Into the range: a latitudinal gradient or a center-margins differentiation of ecological strategies in Arabidopsis thaliana? ANNALS OF BOTANY 2022; 129:343-356. [PMID: 34918027 PMCID: PMC8835660 DOI: 10.1093/aob/mcab149] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2021] [Revised: 12/07/2021] [Accepted: 12/14/2021] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND AIMS Determining within-species large-scale variation in phenotypic traits is central to elucidate the drivers of species' ranges. Intraspecific comparisons offer the opportunity to understand how trade-offs and biogeographical history constrain adaptation to contrasted environmental conditions. Here we test whether functional traits, ecological strategies from the CSR scheme and phenotypic plasticity in response to abiotic stress vary along a latitudinal or a center- margins gradient within the native range of Arabidopsis thaliana. METHODS We experimentally examined the phenotypic outcomes of plant adaptation at the center and margins of its geographic range using 30 accessions from southern, central and northern Europe. We characterized the variation of traits related to stress tolerance, resource use, colonization ability, CSR strategy scores, survival and fecundity in response to high temperature (34 °C) or frost (- 6 °C), combined with a water deficit treatment. KEY RESULTS We found evidence for both a latitudinal and a center-margins differentiation for the traits under scrutiny. Age at maturity, leaf dry matter content, specific leaf area and leaf nitrogen content varied along a latitudinal gradient. Northern accessions presented a greater survival to stress than central and southern accessions. Leaf area, C-scores, R-scores and fruit number followed a center-margins differentiation. Central accessions displayed a higher phenotypic plasticity than northern and southern accessions for most studied traits. CONCLUSIONS Traits related to an acquisitive/conservative resource-use trade-off followed a latitudinal gradient. Traits associated with a competition/colonization trade-off differentiated along the historic colonization of the distribution range and then followed a center-margins differentiation. Our findings pinpoint the need to consider the joint effect of evolutionary history and environmental factors when examining phenotypic variation across the distribution range of a species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aurélien Estarague
- CEFE, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, F-34293, Montpellier, France
- Laboratoire d’Ecophysiologie des Plantes sous Stress Environnementaux (LEPSE), INRAE, Montpellier SupAgro, UMR759, F-34060, Montpellier, France
| | - François Vasseur
- CEFE, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, F-34293, Montpellier, France
| | - Kevin Sartori
- CEFE, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, F-34293, Montpellier, France
- Department of Plant Biology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden
| | | | - Denis Cornet
- CIRAD, UMR AGAP Institut, F-34398, Montpellier, France
- UMR AGAP Institut, Univ Montpellier, CIRAD, INRAE, Institut Agro, F-34398, Montpellier, France
| | - Lauriane Rouan
- CIRAD, UMR AGAP Institut, F-34398, Montpellier, France
- UMR AGAP Institut, Univ Montpellier, CIRAD, INRAE, Institut Agro, F-34398, Montpellier, France
| | - Gregory Beurier
- CIRAD, UMR AGAP Institut, F-34398, Montpellier, France
- UMR AGAP Institut, Univ Montpellier, CIRAD, INRAE, Institut Agro, F-34398, Montpellier, France
| | - Moises Exposito-Alonso
- Department of Plant Biology, Carnegie Institution for Science, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | | | - Justine Bresson
- CEFE, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, F-34293, Montpellier, France
| | - Denis Vile
- Laboratoire d’Ecophysiologie des Plantes sous Stress Environnementaux (LEPSE), INRAE, Montpellier SupAgro, UMR759, F-34060, Montpellier, France
| | - Cyrille Violle
- CEFE, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, F-34293, Montpellier, France
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10
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Keep T, Rouet S, Blanco-Pastor JL, Barre P, Ruttink T, Dehmer KJ, Hegarty M, Ledauphin T, Litrico I, Muylle H, Roldán-Ruiz I, Surault F, Veron R, Willner E, Sampoux JP. Inter-annual and spatial climatic variability have led to a balance between local fluctuating selection and wide-range directional selection in a perennial grass species. ANNALS OF BOTANY 2021; 128:357-369. [PMID: 33949648 PMCID: PMC8389464 DOI: 10.1093/aob/mcab057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2021] [Accepted: 04/29/2021] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND AIMS The persistence of a plant population under a specific local climatic regime requires phenotypic adaptation with underlying particular combinations of alleles at adaptive loci. The level of allele diversity at adaptive loci within a natural plant population conditions its potential to evolve, notably towards adaptation to a change in climate. Investigating the environmental factors that contribute to the maintenance of adaptive diversity in populations is thus worthwhile. Within-population allele diversity at adaptive loci can be partly driven by the mean climate at the population site but also by its temporal variability. METHODS The effects of climate temporal mean and variability on within-population allele diversity at putatively adaptive quantitative trait loci (QTLs) were evaluated using 385 natural populations of Lolium perenne (perennial ryegrass) collected right across Europe. For seven adaptive traits related to reproductive phenology and vegetative potential growth seasonality, the average within-population allele diversity at major QTLs (HeA) was computed. KEY RESULTS Significant relationships were found between HeA of these traits and the temporal mean and variability of the local climate. These relationships were consistent with functional ecology theory. CONCLUSIONS Results indicated that temporal variability of local climate has likely led to fluctuating directional selection, which has contributed to the maintenance of allele diversity at adaptive loci and thus potential for further adaptation.
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Affiliation(s)
- T Keep
- INRAE, Centre Nouvelle-Aquitaine-Poitiers, UR4 (UR P3F), F-86600 Lusignan, France
| | - S Rouet
- INRAE, Centre Nouvelle-Aquitaine-Poitiers, UR4 (UR P3F), F-86600 Lusignan, France
| | - J L Blanco-Pastor
- INRAE, Centre Nouvelle-Aquitaine-Poitiers, UR4 (UR P3F), F-86600 Lusignan, France
| | - P Barre
- INRAE, Centre Nouvelle-Aquitaine-Poitiers, UR4 (UR P3F), F-86600 Lusignan, France
| | - T Ruttink
- Flanders Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (ILVO) - Plant Sciences Unit, Caritasstraat 39, 9090 Melle, Belgium
| | - K J Dehmer
- Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK), Inselstr. 9, 23999 Malchow/Poel, Germany
| | - M Hegarty
- IBERS-Aberystwyth University, Plas Goggerdan, Aberystwyth, UK
| | - T Ledauphin
- INRAE, Centre Nouvelle-Aquitaine-Poitiers, UR4 (UR P3F), F-86600 Lusignan, France
| | - I Litrico
- INRAE, Centre Nouvelle-Aquitaine-Poitiers, UR4 (UR P3F), F-86600 Lusignan, France
| | - H Muylle
- Flanders Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (ILVO) - Plant Sciences Unit, Caritasstraat 39, 9090 Melle, Belgium
| | - I Roldán-Ruiz
- Flanders Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (ILVO) - Plant Sciences Unit, Caritasstraat 39, 9090 Melle, Belgium
| | - F Surault
- INRAE, Centre Nouvelle-Aquitaine-Poitiers, UR4 (UR P3F), F-86600 Lusignan, France
| | - R Veron
- INRAE, Centre Nouvelle-Aquitaine-Poitiers, UR4 (UR P3F), F-86600 Lusignan, France
| | - E Willner
- Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK), Inselstr. 9, 23999 Malchow/Poel, Germany
| | - J P Sampoux
- INRAE, Centre Nouvelle-Aquitaine-Poitiers, UR4 (UR P3F), F-86600 Lusignan, France
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11
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Keep T, Sampoux J, Barre P, Blanco‐Pastor J, Dehmer KJ, Durand J, Hegarty M, Ledauphin T, Muylle H, Roldán‐Ruiz I, Ruttink T, Surault F, Willner E, Volaire F. To grow or survive: Which are the strategies of a perennial grass to face severe seasonal stress? Funct Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13770] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Klaus J. Dehmer
- Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK) Malchow/Poel Germany
| | | | | | | | - Hilde Muylle
- Flanders Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (ILVO) ‐ Plant Sciences Unit Melle Belgium
| | - Isabel Roldán‐Ruiz
- Flanders Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (ILVO) ‐ Plant Sciences Unit Melle Belgium
| | - Tom Ruttink
- Flanders Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (ILVO) ‐ Plant Sciences Unit Melle Belgium
| | | | - Evelin Willner
- Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK) Malchow/Poel Germany
| | - Florence Volaire
- CEFEUniv MontpellierCNRSEPHE, IRDUniversité Paul Valéry Montpellier 3INRAE Montpellier France
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Blumenthal DM, LeCain DR, Porensky LM, Leger EA, Gaffney R, Ocheltree TW, Pilmanis AM. Local adaptation to precipitation in the perennial grass Elymus elymoides: Trade-offs between growth and drought resistance traits. Evol Appl 2021; 14:524-535. [PMID: 33664792 PMCID: PMC7896711 DOI: 10.1111/eva.13137] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2020] [Revised: 08/06/2020] [Accepted: 08/30/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Understanding local adaptation to climate is critical for managing ecosystems in the face of climate change. While there have been many provenance studies in trees, less is known about local adaptation in herbaceous species, including the perennial grasses that dominate arid and semiarid rangeland ecosystems. We used a common garden study to quantify variation in growth and drought resistance traits in 99 populations of Elymus elymoides from a broad geographic and climatic range in the western United States. Ecotypes from drier sites produced less biomass and smaller seeds, and had traits associated with greater drought resistance: small leaves with low osmotic potential and high integrated water use efficiency (δ13C). Seasonality also influenced plant traits. Plants from regions with relatively warm, wet summers had large seeds, large leaves, and low δ13C. Irrespective of climate, we also observed trade-offs between biomass production and drought resistance traits. Together, these results suggest that much of the phenotypic variation among E. elymoides ecotypes represents local adaptation to differences in the amount and timing of water availability. In addition, ecotypes that grow rapidly may be less able to persist under dry conditions. Land managers may be able to use this variation to improve restoration success by seeding ecotypes with multiple drought resistance traits in areas with lower precipitation. The future success of this common rangeland species will likely depend on the use of tools such as seed transfer zones to match local variation in growth and drought resistance to predicted climatic conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Daniel R. LeCain
- USDA‐ARS Rangeland Resources & Systems Research UnitFort CollinsCOUSA
| | | | | | - Rowan Gaffney
- USDA‐ARS Rangeland Resources & Systems Research UnitFort CollinsCOUSA
| | - Troy W. Ocheltree
- Department of Forest and Rangeland StewardshipColorado State UniversityFort CollinsCOUSA
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Liu Y, Wang W, Yang B, Currey C, Fei SZ. Functional Analysis of the teosinte branched 1 Gene in the Tetraploid Switchgrass ( Panicum virgatum L.) by CRISPR/Cas9-Directed Mutagenesis. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2020; 11:572193. [PMID: 33101338 PMCID: PMC7546813 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2020.572193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2020] [Accepted: 09/03/2020] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Tillering is an important biomass yield component trait in switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.). Teosinte branched 1 (tb1)/Branched 1 (BRC1) gene is a known regulator for tillering/branching in several plant species; however, its role on tillering in switchgrass remains unknown. Here, we report physiological and molecular characterization of mutants created by CRISPR/Cas9. We successfully obtained nonchimeric Pvtb1a and Pvtb1b mutants from chimeric T0 mutants using nodal culture. The biallelic Pvtb1a-Pvtb1b mutant plants produced significantly more tillers and higher fresh weight biomass than the wild-type plants. The increased tiller number in the mutant plants resulted primarily from hastened outgrowth of lower axillary buds. Increased tillers were also observed in transgene-free BC1 monoallelic mutants for either Pvtb1a-Pvtb1b or Pvtb1b gene alone, suggesting Pvtb1 genes act in a dosage-dependent manner. Transcriptome analysis showed 831 genes were differentially expressed in the Pvtb1a-Pvtb1b double knockdown mutant. Gene Ontology analysis revealed downregulation of Pvtb1 genes affected multiple biological processes, including transcription, flower development, cell differentiation, and stress/defense responses in edited plants. This study demonstrates that Pvtb1 genes play a pivotal role in tiller production as a negative regulator in switchgrass and provides opportunities for further research aiming to elucidate the molecular pathway regulating tillering in switchgrass.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yang Liu
- Interdepartmental Program in Plant Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, United States
- Department of Horticulture, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, United States
| | - Weiling Wang
- Department of Horticulture, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, United States
- Innovation Center of Rice Cultivation Technology in Yangtze River Valley, Ministry of Agriculture/Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Physiology of Jiangsu Province, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China
| | - Bing Yang
- Christopher S. Bond Life Sciences Center, Division of Plant Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, United States
- Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, St. Louis, MO, United States
| | - Christopher Currey
- Interdepartmental Program in Plant Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, United States
| | - Shui-zhang Fei
- Interdepartmental Program in Plant Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, United States
- Department of Horticulture, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, United States
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14
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Shihan A, Volaire F, Hättenschwiler S. Neighbor identity affects growth and survival of Mediterranean plants under recurrent drought. Oecologia 2020; 194:555-569. [PMID: 32880027 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-020-04739-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2020] [Accepted: 08/19/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
The increasing intensity and frequency of droughts predicted for the Mediterranean basin with ongoing climate change will impact plant communities and ecosystem functioning. This study investigated the effect of severe recurrent droughts and the role of the neighbor plant identity on the growth and survival of three abundant and co-existing species of a typical Mediterranean shrubland. Two juvenile plants, either of the same species or in all possible combinations of the two woody species Quercus coccifera and Cistus albidus and the perennial grass species Brachypodium retusum were grown together in rhizotrons under controlled watering regimes for two years. Compared to a treatment with only one drought cycle, three successive droughts reduced the relative growth rates (RGR) of shoots and roots in B. retusum, but not in woody species, and increased the mortality of the woody species, but not that of the grass. The survival of C. albidus and of B. retusum, but not of Q. coccifera, increased when the neighbor individual was a different species than when it was the same species. Our data suggest that both species composition and frequency of drought events will impact the dynamics of plant communities in Mediterranean shrublands under ongoing climate change. The abundance of dehydration sensitive woody species will likely decrease under more frequent drought events at the expense of dehydration-tolerant grass species, resulting in potentially strong changes in the functioning of these ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ammar Shihan
- CEFE, Univ. Montpellier, CNRS, INRAE, Univ. Paul-Valéry Montpellier 3, EPHE, IRD, Montpellier, France. .,Department of Renewable Natural Resources and Environment, Faculty of Agricultural, Aleppo University, Aleppo, Syria.
| | - Florence Volaire
- CEFE, Univ. Montpellier, CNRS, INRAE, Univ. Paul-Valéry Montpellier 3, EPHE, IRD, Montpellier, France
| | - Stephan Hättenschwiler
- CEFE, Univ. Montpellier, CNRS, INRAE, Univ. Paul-Valéry Montpellier 3, EPHE, IRD, Montpellier, France
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15
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Lu H, Xue L, Cheng J, Yang X, Xie H, Song X, Qiang S. Polyploidization-driven differentiation of freezing tolerance in Solidago canadensis. PLANT, CELL & ENVIRONMENT 2020; 43:1394-1403. [PMID: 32092164 DOI: 10.1111/pce.13745] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2019] [Revised: 02/13/2020] [Accepted: 02/16/2020] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Solidago canadensis, originating from the temperate region of North America, has expanded southward to subtropical regions through polyploidization. Here we investigated whether freezing tolerance of S. canadensis was weakened during expansion. Measurement of the temperature causing 50% ruptured cells (LT50 ) in 35 S. canadensis populations revealed ploidy-related differentiation in freezing tolerance. Freezing tolerance was found to decrease with increasing ploidy. The polyploid populations of S. canadensis had lower ScICE1 gene expression levels but more ScICE1 gene copies than the diploids. Furthermore, more DNA methylation sites in the ScICE1 gene promoter were detected in the polyploids than in the diploids. The results suggest that promoter methylation represses the expression of multi-copy ScICE1 genes, leading to weaker freezing tolerance in polyploid S. canadensis compared to the diploids. The study provides empirical evidence that DNA methylation regulates expression of the gene copies and supports polyploidization-driven adaptation to new environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huan Lu
- Weed Research Laboratory, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, China
- Australian Herbicide Resistance Initiative, School of Agriculture and Environment, University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
| | - Lifang Xue
- Weed Research Laboratory, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, China
| | - Jiliang Cheng
- Weed Research Laboratory, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, China
| | - Xianghong Yang
- Weed Research Laboratory, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, China
| | - Hongjie Xie
- Weed Research Laboratory, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, China
| | - Xiaoling Song
- Weed Research Laboratory, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, China
| | - Sheng Qiang
- Weed Research Laboratory, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, China
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