1
|
Whalen NS, Hunt TC, Erickson GM. Evapotranspiration-linked silica deposition in a basal tracheophyte plant (Lycopodiaceae: Lycopodiella alopecuroides): implications for the evolutionary origins of phytoliths. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2023; 238:2224-2235. [PMID: 36869439 DOI: 10.1111/nph.18861] [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: 12/09/2022] [Accepted: 02/24/2023] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
Phytoliths, microscopic deposits of hydrated silica within plants, play a myriad of functional roles in extant tracheophytes - yet their evolutionary origins and the original selective pressures leading to their deposition remain poorly understood. To gain new insights into the ancestral condition of tracheophyte phytolith production and function, phytolith content was intensively assayed in a basal, morphologically conserved tracheophyte: the foxtail clubmoss Lycopodiella alopecuroides. Wet ashing was employed to perform phytolith extractions from every major anatomical region of L. alopecuroides. Phytolith occurrence was recorded, alongside abundance, morphometric information, and morphological descriptions. Phytoliths were recovered exclusively from the microphylls, which were apicodistally silicified into multiphytolith aggregates. Phytolith aggregates were larger and more numerous in anatomical regions engaging in greater evapotranspirational activity. The tissue distribution of L. alopecuroides phytoliths is inconsistent with the expectations of proposed adaptive hypotheses of phytolith evolutionary origin. Instead, it is hypothesized that phytoliths may have arisen incidentally in the L. alopecuroides-like ancestral plant, polymerizing from intraplant silicon accumulations arising via bulk flow and 'leaky' cellular micronutrient channels. This basal, nonadaptive phytolith formation model would provide the evolutionary 'raw material' for later modification into the useful, adaptative, phytolith deposits seen in later-diverging plant clades.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Niall S Whalen
- Department of Biological Science, Florida State University, 319 Stadium Drive, Tallahassee, FL, 32304, USA
| | - Tyler C Hunt
- Department of Biological Science, Florida State University, 319 Stadium Drive, Tallahassee, FL, 32304, USA
| | - Gregory M Erickson
- Department of Biological Science, Florida State University, 319 Stadium Drive, Tallahassee, FL, 32304, USA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Katz O, Puppe D, Kaczorek D, Prakash NB, Schaller J. Silicon in the Soil-Plant Continuum: Intricate Feedback Mechanisms within Ecosystems. PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2021; 10:652. [PMID: 33808069 PMCID: PMC8066056 DOI: 10.3390/plants10040652] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2021] [Revised: 03/22/2021] [Accepted: 03/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Plants' ability to take up silicon from the soil, accumulate it within their tissues and then reincorporate it into the soil through litter creates an intricate network of feedback mechanisms in ecosystems. Here, we provide a concise review of silicon's roles in soil chemistry and physics and in plant physiology and ecology, focusing on the processes that form these feedback mechanisms. Through this review and analysis, we demonstrate how this feedback network drives ecosystem processes and affects ecosystem functioning. Consequently, we show that Si uptake and accumulation by plants is involved in several ecosystem services like soil appropriation, biomass supply, and carbon sequestration. Considering the demand for food of an increasing global population and the challenges of climate change, a detailed understanding of the underlying processes of these ecosystem services is of prime importance. Silicon and its role in ecosystem functioning and services thus should be the main focus of future research.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ofir Katz
- Dead Sea and Arava Science Center, Mt. Masada, Tamar Regional Council, 86910 Tamar, Israel
- Eilat Campus, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Hatmarim Blv, 8855630 Eilat, Israel
| | - Daniel Puppe
- Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF), 15374 Müncheberg, Germany; (D.P.); (D.K.); (J.S.)
| | - Danuta Kaczorek
- Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF), 15374 Müncheberg, Germany; (D.P.); (D.K.); (J.S.)
- Department of Soil Environment Sciences, Warsaw University of Life Sciences (SGGW), 02776 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Nagabovanalli B. Prakash
- Department of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK, Bangalore 560065, India;
| | - Jörg Schaller
- Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF), 15374 Müncheberg, Germany; (D.P.); (D.K.); (J.S.)
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Mandlik R, Thakral V, Raturi G, Shinde S, Nikolić M, Tripathi DK, Sonah H, Deshmukh R. Significance of silicon uptake, transport, and deposition in plants. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY 2020; 71:6703-6718. [PMID: 32592476 DOI: 10.1093/jxb/eraa301] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/29/2020] [Accepted: 06/20/2020] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
Numerous studies have shown the beneficial effects of silicon (Si) for plant growth, particularly under stress conditions, and hence a detailed understanding of the mechanisms of its uptake, subsequent transport, and accumulation in different tissues is important. Here, we provide a thorough review of our current knowledge of how plants benefit from Si supplementation. The molecular mechanisms involved in Si transport are discussed and we highlight gaps in our knowledge, particularly with regards to xylem unloading and transport into heavily silicified cells. Silicification of tissues such as sclerenchyma, fibers, storage tissues, the epidermis, and vascular tissues are described. Silicon deposition in different cell types, tissues, and intercellular spaces that affect morphological and physiological properties associated with enhanced plant resilience under various biotic and abiotic stresses are addressed in detail. Most Si-derived benefits are the result of interference in physiological processes, modulation of stress responses, and biochemical interactions. A better understanding of the versatile roles of Si in plants requires more detailed knowledge of the specific mechanisms involved in its deposition in different tissues, at different developmental stages, and under different environmental conditions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rushil Mandlik
- National Agri-Food Biotechnology Institute (NABI), Mohali, Punjab, India
- Department of Biotechnology, Panjab University, Chandigarh, India
| | - Vandana Thakral
- National Agri-Food Biotechnology Institute (NABI), Mohali, Punjab, India
- Department of Biotechnology, Panjab University, Chandigarh, India
| | - Gaurav Raturi
- National Agri-Food Biotechnology Institute (NABI), Mohali, Punjab, India
- Department of Biotechnology, Panjab University, Chandigarh, India
| | - Suhas Shinde
- Department of Biology and Gus R. Douglass Institute, West Virginia State University, Institute, WV, USA
| | - Miroslav Nikolić
- Plant Nutrition Research Group, Institute for Multidisciplinary Research, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Durgesh K Tripathi
- Amity Institute of Organic Agriculture, Amity University Uttar Pradesh, Noida, UP, India
| | - Humira Sonah
- National Agri-Food Biotechnology Institute (NABI), Mohali, Punjab, India
| | - Rupesh Deshmukh
- National Agri-Food Biotechnology Institute (NABI), Mohali, Punjab, India
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Nawaz MA, Zakharenko AM, Zemchenko IV, Haider MS, Ali MA, Imtiaz M, Chung G, Tsatsakis A, Sun S, Golokhvast KS. Phytolith Formation in Plants: From Soil to Cell. PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2019; 8:E249. [PMID: 31357485 PMCID: PMC6724085 DOI: 10.3390/plants8080249] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2019] [Revised: 07/22/2019] [Accepted: 07/23/2019] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
Silica is deposited extra- and intracellularly in plants in solid form, as phytoliths. Phytoliths have emerged as accepted taxonomic tools and proxies for reconstructing ancient flora, agricultural economies, environment, and climate. The discovery of silicon transporter genes has aided in the understanding of the mechanism of silicon transport and deposition within the plant body and reconstructing plant phylogeny that is based on the ability of plants to accumulate silica. However, a precise understanding of the process of silica deposition and the formation of phytoliths is still an enigma and the information regarding the proteins that are involved in plant biosilicification is still scarce. With the observation of various shapes and morphologies of phytoliths, it is essential to understand which factors control this mechanism. During the last two decades, significant research has been done in this regard and silicon research has expanded as an Earth-life science superdiscipline. We review and integrate the recent knowledge and concepts on the uptake and transport of silica and its deposition as phytoliths in plants. We also discuss how different factors define the shape, size, and chemistry of the phytoliths and how biosilicification evolved in plants. The role of channel-type and efflux silicon transporters, proline-rich proteins, and siliplant1 protein in transport and deposition of silica is presented. The role of phytoliths against biotic and abiotic stress, as mechanical barriers, and their use as taxonomic tools and proxies, is highlighted.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Amjad Nawaz
- Education and Scientific Center of Nanotechnology, Far Eastern Federal University, 690950 Vladivostok, Russia
| | | | | | - Muhammad Sajjad Haider
- Department of Forestry, College of Agriculture, University of Sargodha, 40100 Sargodha, Pakistan
| | - Muhammad Amjad Ali
- Department of Plant Pathology, University of Agriculture, 38040 Faisalabad, Pakistan
- Center of Agricultural Biochemistry and Biotechnology (CABB), University of Agriculture, 38040 Faisalabad, Pakistan
| | - Muhammad Imtiaz
- Soil and Environmental Biotechnology Division, National Institute for Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, 38040 Faisalabad, Pakistan
| | - Gyuhwa Chung
- Department of Biotechnology, Chonnam National University, 59626 Yeosu-Si, Korea
| | - Aristides Tsatsakis
- Department of Toxicology and Forensics, School of Medicine, University of Crete, Heraklion GR-71003, Crete, Greece
| | - Sangmi Sun
- Department of Biotechnology, Chonnam National University, 59626 Yeosu-Si, Korea.
| | - Kirill Sergeyevich Golokhvast
- Education and Scientific Center of Nanotechnology, Far Eastern Federal University, 690950 Vladivostok, Russia.
- Pacific Geographical Institute, FEB RAS, 7 Radio street, Vladivostok 690014, Russia.
| |
Collapse
|