Coordination of stomatal,hydraulic, and canopy boundary layer properties: Do stomata balance conductances by measuring transpiration?

A striking coordination is observed in sugarcane between prevailing levels of stomatal opening and the hydraulic capacity of the soil, roots and stem to supply the leaves with water. This coordination of vapor phase and liquid phase conductances is associated with decreases in stomatal conductance on a leaf area basis that compensate for increasing leaf area during canopy development, causing transpiration to approach a maximum value on a per plant or ground area basis rather than increase linearly with leaf area. The resulting balance between water loss and water transport capacity maintains leaf water status remarkably constant over a wide range of plant. sizes and growing conditions. These changes in stomatal conductance during development are determined by changes in the composition of the xylem sap rather than by changes in leaf properties. Changes in boundary layer conductance resulting from non-developmental changes in canopy structure such as loding cause additional changes in stomatal conductance mediated by altered humidity at the leaf surface. These maintain a constant level of total canopy vapor phase conductance (stomatal and boundary layer in series) and a constant level of canopy transpiration. These patterns indicate that stomata exert an active role in regulating transpiration even in dense canopies. This control function is consistent with stomatal metering of transpiration, mediated by fluxes of root-derived materials in the xylem sap.     

Hydraulic architecture of sugarcane in relation to patterns of water use during plant development*

Hydraulic conductance was measured on leaf and stem segments excised from sugarcane plants at different stages of development. Maximum transpiration rates and leaf water potential (Ψ_L) associated with maximum transpiration were also measured in intact plants as a function of plant size. Leaf specific hydraulic conductivity (L_sc) and transpiration on a unit leaf area basis (E) were maximal in plants with approximately 0.2 m² leaf area and decreased with increasing plant size. These changes in Fand L_sc were nearly parallel, which prevented φ_L in larger plants from decreasing to levels associated with substantial loss in xylem conductivity caused by embolism formation. Coordination of changes in E and leaf hydraulic properties was not mediated by declining leaf water status, since φ_L increased with plant size. Hydraulic constrictions were present at nodes and in the node-leaf sheath-leaf blade pathway. This pattern of constrictions is in accord with the idea of plant segmentation into regions differing in water transport efficiency and would tend to confine embolisms to the relatively expendable leaves at terminal positions in the pathway, thereby preserving water transport through the stem.     

Co-ordination of vapour and liquid phase water transport properties in plants

The pathway for water movement from the soil through plants to the atmosphere can be represented by a series of liquid and vapour phase resistances. Stomatal regulation of vapour phase resistance balances transpiration with the efficiency of water supply to the leaves, avoiding leaf desiccation at one extreme, and unnecessary restriction of carbon dioxide uptake at the other. In addition to maintaining a long-term balance between vapour and liquid phase water transport resistances in plants, stomata are exquisitely sensitive to short-term, dynamic perturbations of liquid water transport. In balancing vapour and liquid phase water transport, stomata do not seem to distinguish among potential sources of variation in the apparent efficiency of delivery of water per guard cell complex. Therefore, an apparent soil-to-leaf hydraulic conductance based on relationships between liquid water fluxes and driving forces in situ seems to be the most versatile for interpretation of stomatal regulatory behaviour that achieves relative homeostasis of leaf water status in intact plants. Components of dynamic variation in apparent hydraulic conductance in intact plants include, exchange of water between the transpiration stream and internal storage compartments via capacitive discharge and recharge, cavitation and its reversal, temperature-induced changes in the viscosity of water, direct effects of xylem sap composition on xylem hydraulic properties, and endogenous and environmentally induced variation in the activity of membrane water channels in the hydraulic pathway. Stomatal responses to humidity must also be considered in interpreting co-ordination of vapour and liquid phase water transport because homeostasis of bulk leaf water status can only be achieved through regulation of the actual transpirational flux. Results of studies conducted with multiple species point to considerable convergence with regard to co-ordination of stomatal and hydraulic properties. Because stomata apparently sense and respond to integrated and dynamic soil-to-leaf water transport properties, studies involving intact plants under both natural and controlled conditions are likely to yield the most useful new insights concerning stomatal co-ordination of transpiration with soil and plant hydraulic properties.     

Effects of manipulation of water and nitrogen regime on the water relations of the desert shrub Larrea tridentata

Summary Water and nitrogen regimes of Larrea tridentata shrubs growing in the field were manipulated during an annual cycle. Patterns of leaf water status, leaf water relations characteristics, and stomatal behavior were followed concurrently. Large variations in leaf water status in both irrigated and nonirrigated individuals were observed. Predawn and midday leaf water potentials of nonirrigated shrubs were lowest except when measurements had been preceded by significant rainfall. Despite the large seasonal variation in leaf water status, reasonably constant, high levels of turgor were maintained. Pressure-volume curve analysis suggested that changes in the bulk leaf osmotic potential at full turgor were small and that nearly all of the turgor adjustment was due to tissue elastic adjustment. The increase in tissue elasticity with increasing water deficit manifested itself as a decrease in the relative water content at zero turgor and as a decrease in the tissue bulk elastic modulus. Because of large hydration-induced displacement in the osmotic potential and relative water content at zero turgor, it was necessary to use shoots in their natural state of hydration for pressure-volume curve determinations. Large diurnal and seasonal differences in maximum stomatal conductance were observed, but could not easily be attributed to variations in leaf water potential or leaf water relations characteristics such as the turgor loss point. The single factor which seemed to account for most of the diurnal and seasonal differences in maximum stomatal conductance between individual shrubs was an index of soil/root/ shoot hydraulic resistance. Daily maximum stomatal conductance was found to decrease with increasing soil/root/ shoot hydraulic resistance. This pattern was most consistent if the hydraulic resistance calculation was based on an estimate of total canopy transpiration rather than the more commonly used transpiration per unit leaf area. The reasons for this are discussed. It is suggested that while stomatal aperture necessarily represents a major physical resistance controlling transpiration, plant hydraulic resistance may represent the functional resistance through its effects on stomatal aperture.     

Growth response of barley and tomato to nitrogen stress and its control by abscisic acid,water relations and photosynthesis

Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) and tomato Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) were grown hydroponically and examined 2, 5, and 10 d after being deprived of nitrogen (N) supply. Leaf elongation rate declined in both species in response to N stress before there was any reduction in rate of dryweight accumulation. Changes in water transport to the shoot could not explain reduced leaf elongation in tomato because leaf water content and water potential were unaffected by N stress at the time leaf elongation began to decline. Tomato maintained its shoot water status in N-stressed plants, despite reduced water absorption per gram root, because the decline in root hydraulic conductance with N stress was matched by a decline in stomatal conductance. In barley the decline in leaf elongation coincided with a small (8%) decline in water content per unit area of young leaves; this decline occurred because root hydraulic conductance was reduced more strongly by N stress than was stomatal conductance. Nitrogen stress caused a rapid decline in tissue NO ₃ ^- pools and in NO ₃ ^- flux to the xylem, particularly in tomato which had smaller tissue NO ₃ ^- reserves. Even in barley, tissue NO ₃ ^- reserves were too small and were mobilized too slowly (60% in 2 d) to support maximal growth for more than a few hours. Organic N mobilized from old leaves provided an additional N source to support continued growth of N-stressed plants. Abscisic acid (ABA) levels increased in leaves of both species within 2 d in response to N stress. Addition of ABA to roots caused an increase in volume of xylem exudate but had no effect upon NO ₃ ^- flux to the xylem. After leaf-elongation rate had been reduced by N stress, photosynthesis declined in both barley and tomato. This decline was associated with increased leaf ABA content, reduced stomatal conductance and a decrease in organic N content. We suggest that N stress reduces growth by several mechanisms operating on different time scales: (1) increased leaf ABA content causing reduced cell-wall extensibility and leaf elongation and (2) a more gradual decline in photosynthesis caused by ABA-induced stomatal closure and by a decrease in leaf organic N.Abbreviation and symbols ABA abscisic acid - c_i leaf internal CO₂ concentration - L_p root hydraulic conductance     

Growth and water-use efficiency of 10 Triticum aestivum cultivars at different water availability in relation to allocation of biomass

In environments where the amount of water is limiting growth, water-use efficiency (biomass production per unit water use) is an important trait. We studied the relationships of plant growth and water use efficiency with the pattern of biomass allocation, using 10 wheat cultivars, grown at two soil moisture levels in a growth chamber. Allocation pattern and relative growth rate were not correlated, whereas allocation pattern and water use efficiency were. Variation in transpiration per plant resulted from variation in the rate of transpiration per unit leaf area or root weight, rather than from differences in leaf area or root weight per plant. Transpiration per unit leaf area or root weight was lower when the leaf area or root weight per unit plant weight was larger. Also, the efficiency of water use at the plant and leaf levels was higher for plants with a higher leaf area per unit plant weight, and it was not correlated with the plant's growth rate. Differences in water-use efficiency at the leaf level were related to variation in stomatal conductance, rather than in the rate of photosynthesis. A high photosynthetic water-use efficiency was associated with a low efficiency of nitrogen use for photosynthesis.     

Analysis of salinity effects on basil leaf surface area, photosynthetic activity, and growth

Basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) seedlings were cultured on liquid medium in controlled conditions. Two varieties differing in leaf size were compared. When plants were 30?days old, the medium was supplemented with 50?mM NaCl. After 15?days of treatment, root, stem and leaf biomass, leaf number, and leaf surface area were measured. Ion accumulation was determined in roots, stems, and leaves. Photosynthetic parameters (CO₂ fixation rate, internal CO₂ concentration, stomatal conductance) as well as transpiration rate were determined on separate leaves. Electrolyte leakage and malondialdehyde content were used to estimate damage to membranes and lipid peroxidation, respectively. Several antioxidant enzymatic activities were used as proxies of oxidative stress. High Na⁺ concentration was reached in leaf tissues. Salt restricted whole plant biomass deposition rate by diminishing leaf number and leaf expansion, as well as photosynthetic activity were estimated from whole plant biomass production per unit leaf surface area. Diminished stomatal conductance restricted CO₂ fixation rate, and decrease in chlorophyll content presumably limited photosynthetic activity. Lipid peroxidation revealed damages to membranes. The magnitude of these responses differed between the two varieties, indicating that an intraspecific variability in salt response exists in basil.     

Regulation of water flux through trunks, branches, and leaves in trees of a lowland tropical forest

We studied regulation of whole-tree water use in individuals of five diverse canopy tree species growing in a Panamanian seasonal forest. A construction crane equipped with a gondola was used to access the upper crowns and points along the branches and trunks of the study trees for making concurrent measurements of sap flow at the whole-tree and branch levels, and vapor phase conductances and water status at the leaf level. These measurements were integrated to assess physiological regulation of water use from the whole-tree to the single-leaf scale. Whole-tree water use ranged from 379 kg day⁻¹ in a 35 m-tall Anacardium excelsum tree to 46 kg day⁻¹ in an 18 m-tall Cecropia longipes tree. The dependence of whole-tree and branch sap velocity and sap flow on sapwood area was essentially identical in the five trees studied. However, large differences in transpiration per unit leaf area (E) among individuals and among branches on the same individual were observed. These differences were substantially reduced when E was normalized by the corresponding branch leaf area:sapwood area ratio (LA/SA). Variation in stomatal conductance (g _s) and crown conductance (g _c), a total vapor phase conductance that includes stomatal and boundary layer components, was closely associated with variation in the leaf area-specific total hydraulic conductance of the soil/leaf pathway (G _t). Vapor phase conductance in all five trees responded similarly to variation in G _t. Large diurnal variations in G _t were associated with diurnal variation in exchange of water between the transpiration stream and internal stem storage compartments. Differences in stomatal regulation of transpiration on a leaf area basis appeared to be governed largely by tree size and hydraulic architectural features rather than physiological differences in the responsiveness of stomata. We suggest that reliance on measurements gathered at a single scale or inadequate range of scale may result in misleading conclusions concerning physiological differences in regulation of transpiration. Received: 1 October 1997 / Accepted: 6 March 1998     

A coupled model of stomatal conductance, photosynthesis and transpiration

A model that couples stomatal conductance, photosynthesis, leaf energy balance and transport of water through the soil–plant–atmosphere continuum is presented. Stomatal conductance in the model depends on light, temperature and intercellular CO₂ concentration via photosynthesis and on leaf water potential, which in turn is a function of soil water potential, the rate of water flow through the soil and plant, and on xylem hydraulic resistance. Water transport from soil to roots is simulated through solution of Richards’ equation. The model captures the observed hysteresis in diurnal variations in stomatal conductance, assimilation rate and transpiration for plant canopies. Hysteresis arises because atmospheric demand for water from the leaves typically peaks in mid‐afternoon and because of uneven distribution of soil matric potentials with distance from the roots. Potentials at the root surfaces are lower than in the bulk soil, and once soil water supply starts to limit transpiration, root potentials are substantially less negative in the morning than in the afternoon. This leads to higher stomatal conductances, CO₂ assimilation and transpiration in the morning compared to later in the day. Stomatal conductance is sensitive to soil and plant hydraulic properties and to root length density only after approximately 10 d of soil drying, when supply of water by the soil to the roots becomes limiting. High atmospheric demand causes transpiration rates, LE, to decline at a slightly higher soil water content, θ_s, than at low atmospheric demand, but all curves of LE versus θ_s fall on the same line when soil water supply limits transpiration. Stomatal conductance cannot be modelled in isolation, but must be fully coupled with models of photosynthesis/respiration and the transport of water from soil, through roots, stems and leaves to the atmosphere.     

In Situ Measurement of Epidermal Cell Turgor, Leaf Water Potential, and Gas Exchange in Tradescantia virginiana L

A combined system has been developed in which epidermal cell turgor, leaf water potential, and gas exchange were determined for transpiring leaves of Tradescantia virginiana L. Uniform and stable values of turgor were observed in epidermal cells (stomatal complex cells were not studied) under stable environmental conditions for both upper and lower epidermises. The changes in epidermal cell turgor that were associated with changes in leaf transpiration were larger than the changes in leaf water potential, indicating the presence of transpirationally induced within-leaf water potential gradients. Estimates of 3 to 5 millimoles per square meter per second per megapascal were obtained for the value of within-leaf hydraulic conductivity. Step changes in atmospheric humidity caused rapid changes in epidermal cell turgor with little or no initial change in stomatal conductance, indicating little direct relation between stomatal humidity response and epidermal water status. The significance of within-leaf water potential gradients to measurements of plant water potential and to current hypotheses regarding stomatal response to humidity is discussed.     

桃树冠层蒸腾动态的数学模拟

将气孔导度公式、Penman—Monteith公式和土壤水分限制模型相结合,可以模拟出不同环境因子对植物蒸腾进程的影响。通过对盆栽桃树（Prunus persica var．nectadna Maxim．）数值模拟发现：影响桃树蒸腾速率的主要气象因子是太阳辐射、大气温度和湿度。植物通过气孔导度的改变来响应气象因子的变化,蒸腾的日变化主要是由气象因子的日变化引起的。土壤的水分状况也对气孔导度有显著的影响,进而影响植物的蒸腾大小。通过数值模拟还发现植物的蒸腾量并不总是随叶面积的增大而增大,对于桃树而言叶面积指数为4左右时日蒸腾量达到最大值。通过对气孔导度和蒸腾速率的模拟值和实测值进行检验发现,两者基本吻合,说明利用数学模拟的方法可以求出不同环境条件和不同叶面积桃树冠层的蒸腾速率。     

WATER RELATIONS AND GROWTH CHARACTERISTICS OF PROSOPIS GLANDULOSA VAR. TORREYANA IN A SIMULATED PHREATOPHYTIC ENVIRONMENT

Recent studies of Prosopis glandulosa have demonstrated a unique system of a deeply rooted species with significant water stress tolerance. Several growth and developmental characteristics have been correlated with water stress and nitrogen availability during field studies. Here we present a lab experiment in which a phreatophytic regime is simulated and the availability of nitrogen and water are varied. Increased ground water salinity caused lower plant water potentials and greater osmotic adjustment without significant increases in leaf Na⁺ concentrations. Leaf conductance was higher in the higher salinity treatments. Low water potential was also associated with reduced leaf size, reduced leaf area per plant and increased root to shoot ratio. Specific leaf weight and the transpiration ratio were unaffected by the low water potentials induced by increased salinity. Increasing nitrogen availability caused increased growth rates but did not influence water use efficiency. Net assimilation rates increased with increasing nitrogen availability but relative growth rates were more dependent on overall plant size than treatment conditions. The responses of P. glandulosa to the simulated phreatophytic environment were similar to those predicted by field measurements.     

Stomatal control of transpiration from a developing sugarcane canopy

Abstract. Stomatal conductance of single leaves and transpiration from an entire sugarcane (Saccharum spp. hybrid) canopy were measured simultaneously using independent techniques. Stomatal and environmental controls of transpiration were assessed at three stages of canopy development, corresponding to leaf area indices (L) of 2.2, 3.6 and 5.6. Leaf and canopy boundary layers impeded transport of transpired water vapour away from the canopy, causing humidity around the leaves to find its own value through local equilibration rather than a value determined by the humidity of the bulk air mass above the canopy. This tended to uncouple transpiration from direct stomatal control, so that transpiration predicted from measurement of stomatal conductance and leaf-to-air vapour pressure differences was increasingly overestimated as the reference point for ambient vapour pressure measurement was moved farther from the leaf and into the bulk air. The partitioning of control between net radiation and stomata was expressed as a dimensionless decoupling coefficent ranging from zero to 1.0. When the stomatal aperture was near its maximum this coefficient was approximately 0.9, indicating that small reductions in stomatal aperture would have had little effect on canopy transpiration. Maximum rates of transpiration were, however, limited by large adjustments in maximum stomatal conductance during canopy development. The product of maximum stomatal conductance and L. a potential total canopy conductance in the absence of boundary layer effects, remained constant as L increased. Similarly, maximum canopy conductance, derived from independent micrometeorological measurements, also remained constant over this period. Calculations indicated that combined leaf and canopy boundary layer conductance decreased with increasing L such that the ratio of boundary layer conductance to maximum stomatal conductance remained nearly constant at approximately 0.5. These observations indicated that stomata adjusted to maintain both transpiration and the degree of stomatal control of transpiration constant as canopy development proceeded.     

采煤塌陷影响下土壤含水量变化对柠条气孔导度、蒸腾与光合作用速率的影响

采煤塌陷引起的土壤环境因子的变化对矿区植物生长的影响越来越受到人们的关注,气孔导度、蒸腾与光合作用作为环境变化响应的敏感因子,研究植物气孔导度、蒸腾与光合作用的变化是揭示荒漠矿区自然环境变化及其规律的重要手段之一。研究采煤塌陷条件下植物光合生理的变化是探究煤炭开采对植物叶片水分蒸腾散失和CO_2同化速率影响的关键环节,是探讨采煤塌陷影响下植物能量与水分交换动态的基础,而采煤矿区植物叶片气孔导度、蒸腾与光合作用速率对采煤塌陷影响下土壤含水量变化的响应如何尚不清楚。选取神东煤田大柳塔矿区52302工作面为实验场地,以生态修复物种柠条为研究对象,对采煤塌陷区和对照区柠条叶片气孔导度、蒸腾和光合作用速率以及土壤体积含水量进行监测,分析了采煤塌陷条件下土壤含水量的变化以及其对柠条叶片气孔导度、蒸腾与光合作用速率的影响。结果显示:(1)煤炭井工开采在地表形成大量裂缝,破坏了土体结构,潜水位埋深降低,土壤含水量均低于沉陷初期,相对于对照区,硬梁和风沙塌陷区土壤含水量分别降低了18.61%、21.12%;(2)柠条叶片气孔导度、蒸腾和光合作用速率均与土壤含水量呈正相关关系;煤炭开采沉陷增加了地表水分散失,加剧了土壤水分胁迫程度,为了减少蒸腾导致的水分散失,柠条叶片气孔阻力增加,从而气孔导度降低,阻碍了光合作用CO_2的供应,从而导致柠条叶片光合作用速率的降低,蒸腾速率也显著降低。     

Stomatal behavior and water relations of waterlogged tomato plants

The effects of waterlogging the soil on leaf water potential, leaf epidermal conductance, transpiration, root conductance to water flow, and petiole epinasty have been examined in the tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.). Stomatal conductance and transpiration are reduced by 30% to 40% after approximately 24 hours of soil flooding. This is not due to a transient water deficit, as leaf water potential is unchanged, even though root conductance is decreased by the stress. The stomatal response apparently prevents any reduction in leaf water potential. Experiments with varied time of flooding, root excision, and stem girdling provide indirect evidence for an influence of roots in maintaining stomatal opening potential. This root-effect cannot be entirely accounted for by alterations in source-sink relationships. Although 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid, the immediate precursor of ethylene, is transported from the roots to the shoots of waterlogged tomato plants, it has no direct effect on stomatal conductance. Ethylene-induced petiole epinasty develops coincident with partial stomatal closure in waterlogged plants. Leaf epinasty may have beneficial effects on plant water balance by reducing light interception.     

The temperature dependence of shoot hydraulic resistance: implications for stomatal behaviour and hydraulic limitation

Recent soil pressurization experiments have shown that stomatal closure in response to high leaf–air humidity gradients can be explained by direct feedback from leaf water potential. The more complex temperature‐by‐humidity interactive effects on stomatal conductance have not yet been explained fully. Measurements of the change in shoot conductance with temperature were made on Phaseolus vulgaris (common bean) to test whether temperature‐induced changes in the liquid‐phase transport capacity could explain these temperature‐ by‐humidity effects. In addition, shoot hydraulic resistances were partitioned within the stem and leaves to determine whether or not leaves exhibit a greater resistance. Changes in hydraulic conductance were calculated based on an Ohm’s law analogy. Whole‐plant gas exchange was used to determine steady‐ state transpiration rates. A combination of in situ psychrometer measurements, Scholander pressure chamber measurements and psychrometric measurements of leaf punches was used to determine water potential differences within the shoot. Hydraulic conductance for each portion of the pathway was estimated as the total flow divided by the water potential difference. Temperature‐induced changes in stomatal conductance were correlated linearly with temperature‐induced changes in hydraulic conductance. The magnitude of the temperature‐induced changes in whole‐plant hydraulic conductance was sufficient to account for the interactive effects of temperature and humidity on stomatal conductance.     

亚低温与干旱胁迫对番茄植株水分传输和形态解剖结构的影响

为探讨亚低温和干旱对植株水分传输的影响机制,以番茄幼苗为试材,利用人工气候室设置常温(昼25 ℃/夜18 ℃)和亚低温(昼15 ℃/夜8 ℃)环境,采用盆栽进行正常灌水(75%～85%田间持水量)和干旱处理(55%～65%田间持水量),分析了温度和土壤水分对番茄植株水分传输、气孔和木质部导管形态解剖结构的影响。结果表明: 与常温正常灌水处理相比,干旱处理使番茄叶水势、蒸腾速率、气孔导度、水力导度、茎流速率、气孔长度和叶、茎、根导管直径显著减小,而使叶、茎、根导管细胞壁厚度和抗栓塞能力增强;亚低温处理下番茄叶水势、蒸腾速率、气孔导度、水力导度和叶、茎、根导管直径显著降低,但气孔变大,叶、根导管细胞壁厚度和叶、茎、根抗栓塞能力显著升高。亚低温条件下土壤水分状况对番茄叶水势、蒸腾速率、气孔导度、水力导度、气孔形态、叶、根导管结构均无显著影响。总之,干旱处理下番茄通过协同调控叶、茎、根结构使植株水分关系重新达到稳态;亚低温处理下番茄植株水分关系的调控主要通过改变叶和根导管结构实现,且受土壤水分状况的影响较小。     

Does transpiration control stomatal responses to water vapour pressure deficit?

Three types of observations were used to test the hypothesis that the response of stomatal conductance to a change in vapour pressure deficit is controlled by whole-leaf transpiration rate or by feedback from leaf water potential. Varying the leaf water potential of a measured leaf by controlling the transpiration rate of other leaves on the plant did not affect the response of stomatal conductance to vapour pressure deficit in Glycine max. In three species, stomatal sensitivity to vapour pressure deficit was eliminated when measurements were made at near-zero carbon dioxide concentrations, despite the much higher transpiration rates of leaves at low carbon dioxide. In Abutilon theophrasti, increasing vapour pressure deficit sometimes resulted in both decreased stomatal conductance and a lower transpiration rate even though the response of assimilation rate to the calculated substomatal carbon dioxide concentration indicated that there was no ‘patchy’ stomatal closure at high vapour pressure deficit in this case. These results are not consistent with stomatal closure at high vapour pressure deficit caused by increased whole-leaf transpiration rate or by lower leaf water potential. The lack of response of conductance to vapour pressure deficit in carbon dioxide-free air suggests that abscisic acid may mediate the response.     

Quantitative analysis of transpiration stream dynamics in an intact cucumber stem by a heat flux control method

Water flux of transpiration stream in an intact stem of the 10 leaf stage cucumber plant (Cucumis sativus L. cv. Chojitsu-Ochiai) was measured by a novel system of heat flux control method with a resolution of 1 × 10⁻³ grams per second and a time constant of 1 minute; two heat flux control sensors were attached to the seventh internode and the stem base. The transpiration stream responded clearly to leaf transpiration and root water absorption when the plant was exposed to light, and the water flux at the stem base corresponded to the transpiration rate per plant in steady state. Root water absorption lagged about 10 minutes behind leaf transpiration. Dynamics of water fluxes were affected by the lag of water absorption in roots, and temporary water loss caused by rapid increase in leaf transpiration was buffered by about 5% of the water content in the stem.     

Aquaporins and plant transpiration

Although transpiration and aquaporins have long been identified as two key components influencing plant water status, it is only recently that their relations have been investigated in detail. The present review first examines the various facets of aquaporin function in stomatal guard cells and shows that it involves transport of water but also of other molecules such as carbon dioxide and hydrogen peroxide. At the whole plant level, changes in tissue hydraulics mediated by root and shoot aquaporins can indirectly impact plant transpiration. Recent studies also point to a feedback effect of transpiration on aquaporin function. These mechanisms may contribute to the difference between isohydric and anisohydric stomatal regulation of leaf water status. The contribution of aquaporins to transpiration control goes far beyond the issue of water transport during stomatal movements and involves emerging cellular and long‐distance signalling mechanisms which ultimately act on plant growth.