激素对水生植物生理生态的影响及其应用

激素代谢是植物传导信号和调节生长发育的重要途径.陆地植物五大类激素在水生植物中也有分布,尽管近年来环境污染导致水生植物衰退的问题日益得到重视,但水生植物激素的研究和应用却远滞后于陆生植物.在总结了近年来激素类物质在水生植物中的研究成果,分别从激素的种类、激素的生理生态作用、激素生物合成的途径及作用的部位和机制、激素之间的相互作用.激素类物质在实验和实践上的应用等进行了全面阐述,指出了水生植物激素生理生态学研究的发展方向,从利用激素类物质诱导水生植物抗性的表达,提高抗逆性,恢复水生植被,以及研究和开发适于水生植物生产和管理的生长调节剂等方面,就水生植物激素的进一步研究和应用进行了探讨.     

Sensitivity of duckweed (Lemna major) to ultraviolet-B radiation

The sensitivity of an important aquatic macrophyte, duckweed (Lemna major), to UV-B radiation was studied under experimental conditions at three different doses designated as no, mild, and severe injury dose by observing visible injury symptoms and estimating levels of chlorophyll, pheophytin, carotenoids, protein, starch, free sugar, and peroxidase activity. Laboratory-grown duckweed plants were exposed to UV-B radiation at 0.4 mW/cm(2) intensity for different time periods. Mild and severe injury were developed at 6.48 and 8.64 J, respectively. Peroxidase activity increased at all the exposure levels. Dose-dependent decrease in chlorophyll and starch with drastic depletion in protein and free sugar content were observed. Pheophytin and carotenoids content increased at no injury level, but decreased at higher exposure level. The results indicate that ambient UV-B radiation at the indicated level acts as a physiological stress in Lemna major.     

Metabolic engineering of ketocarotenoid formation in higher plants

Although higher plants synthesize carotenoids, they do not possess the ability to form ketocarotenoids. In order to generate higher plants capable of synthesizing combinations of ketolated and hydroxylated carotenoids the genes responsible for the carotene 4,4' oxygenase and 3,3' hydroxylase have been transformed into tomato and tobacco. The gene products were produced as a polyprotein. Subsequent cleavage of the polyprotein, targeting of the two enzymes to the plastid and enzyme activities have been shown for both gene products. Metabolite profiling has shown the formation of ketolated carotenoids from beta-carotene and its hydroxylated intermediates in tobacco and tomato leaf. In the nectary tissues of tobacco flowers a quantitative increase (10-fold) as well as compositional changes were evident, including the presence of astaxanthin, canthaxanthin and 4-ketozeaxanthin. Interestingly, in this tissue the newly formed carotenoids resided predominantly as esters. These data are discussed in terms of metabolic engineering of carotenoids and their sequestration in higher plant tissues.     

The current concepts of functional role of carotenoids in the eukaryotic chloroplasts

Current state of knowledge of functional role of carotenoids in algal and higher plant chloroplasts is reviewed. Basic functions of carotenoids are shown to be light-protective, light-absorbing, and structural, as well as participating in photochemical processes of photosystems I and II. Such xanthophylls as neoxanthin, fucoxanthin, peridinin and alloxanthin, which have allenic or acetylenic bond, mostly function as light-absorbers. They transmit absorbed energy to chlorophyll b. Other xanthophylls occupying certain strictly specified loci in light-absorbing chlorophyll-a/b-protein complexes of photosystems have either structural function (lutein) or light-protective function (zeaxanthin, antheraxanthin, violaxanthin). Carotenoids of xanthophyll cycles preserve chlorophylls and lipids of photosynthetic membranes from photodestruction at overlighting in the presence of oxygen. In eukaryotic chloroplasts, three types of xanthophyll cycles were found: violaxanthin, lutein-5,6-epoxide, and diadinoxanthin. The similarities and dissimilarities between epoxidation and de-epoxidation reactions of these cycles are discussed in detail in the present work. The pattern of occurrence of xanthophyll cycles among higher plants and freshwater and marine algae is outlined.     

A possible structural role for carotenoids and carotenoid precursors in etioplasts

Seedlings of wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) were grown in darkness in different concentrations of the herbicide SAN-9789, an inhibitor of carotenoid synthesis. The ultrastructural appearance of etioplasts, containing different amounts of carotenoids, was compared to the contents of carotenoids and carotenoid precursors (phytoene and phytofluene). A correlation was found between the presence of carotenoids and the presence of partitions between prothylakoids. As the plants were grown in darkness, this correlation is interpreted as the result of a structural role of the carotenoids. The presence of the herbicide SAN-9789 resulted in an increase in size and a change from osmiophilic to non-osmiophilic plastoglobuli. This change in plastoglobuli was neither correlated to the increase in phytoene or phytofluene, nor to the decrease in carotenoids.     

Biologically Active Polymers from Spontaneous Carotenoid Oxidation: A New Frontier in Carotenoid Activity

In animals carotenoids show biological activity unrelated to vitamin A that has been considered to arise directly from the behavior of the parent compound, particularly as an antioxidant. However, the very property that confers antioxidant activity on some carotenoids in plants also confers susceptibility to oxidative transformation. As an alternative, it has been suggested that carotenoid oxidative breakdown or metabolic products could be the actual agents of activity in animals. However, an important and neglected aspect of the behavior of the highly unsaturated carotenoids is their potential to undergo addition of oxygen to form copolymers. Recently we reported that spontaneous oxidation of ß-carotene transforms it into a product dominated by ß-carotene-oxygen copolymers. We now report that the polymeric product is biologically active. Results suggest an overall ability to prime innate immune function to more rapidly respond to subsequent microbial challenges. An underlying structural resemblance to sporopollenin, found in the outer shell of spores and pollen, may allow the polymer to modulate innate immune responses through interactions with the pattern recognition receptor system. Oxygen copolymer formation appears common to all carotenoids, is anticipated to be widespread, and the products may contribute to the health benefits of carotenoid-rich fruits and vegetables.     

Making extra room for carotenoids in plant cells: New opportunities for biofortification

Plant carotenoids are essential for photosynthesis and photoprotection and provide colors in the yellow to red range to non-photosynthetic organs such as petals and ripe fruits. They are also the precursors of biologically active molecules not only in plants (including hormones and retrograde signals) but also in animals (including retinoids such as vitamin A). A carotenoid-rich diet has been associated with improved health and cognitive capacity in humans, whereas the use of carotenoids as natural pigments is widespread in the agrofood and cosmetic industries. The nutritional and economic relevance of carotenoids has spurred a large number of biotechnological strategies to enrich plant tissues with carotenoids. Most of such approaches to alter carotenoid contents in plants have been focused on manipulating their biosynthesis or degradation, whereas improving carotenoid sink capacity in plant tissues has received much less attention. Our knowledge on the molecular mechanisms influencing carotenoid storage in plants has substantially grown in the last years, opening new opportunities for carotenoid biofortification. Here we will review these advances with a particular focus on those creating extra room for carotenoids in plant cells either by promoting the differentiation of carotenoid-sequestering structures within plastids or by transferring carotenoid production to the cytosol.     

Herbivore regulation of plant abundance in aquatic ecosystems

Herbivory is a fundamental process that controls primary producer abundance and regulates energy and nutrient flows to higher trophic levels. Despite the recent proliferation of small‐scale studies on herbivore effects on aquatic plants, there remains limited understanding of the factors that control consumer regulation of vascular plants in aquatic ecosystems. Our current knowledge of the regulation of primary producers has hindered efforts to understand the structure and functioning of aquatic ecosystems, and to manage such ecosystems effectively. We conducted a global meta‐analysis of the outcomes of plant–herbivore interactions using a data set comprised of 326 values from 163 studies, in order to test two mechanistic hypotheses: first, that greater negative changes in plant abundance would be associated with higher herbivore biomass densities; second, that the magnitude of changes in plant abundance would vary with herbivore taxonomic identity. We found evidence that plant abundance declined with increased herbivore density, with plants eliminated at high densities. Significant between‐taxa differences in impact were detected, with insects associated with smaller reductions in plant abundance than all other taxa. Similarly, birds caused smaller reductions in plant abundance than echinoderms, fish, or molluscs. Furthermore, larger reductions in plant abundance were detected for fish relative to crustaceans. We found a positive relationship between herbivore species richness and change in plant abundance, with the strongest reductions in plant abundance reported for low herbivore species richness, suggesting that greater herbivore diversity may protect against large reductions in plant abundance. Finally, we found that herbivore–plant nativeness was a key factor affecting the magnitude of herbivore impacts on plant abundance across a wide range of species assemblages. Assemblages comprised of invasive herbivores and native plant assemblages were associated with greater reductions in plant abundance compared with invasive herbivores and invasive plants, native herbivores and invasive plants, native herbivores and mixed‐nativeness plants, and native herbivores and native plants. By contrast, assemblages comprised of native herbivores and invasive plants were associated with lower reductions in plant abundance compared with both mixed‐nativeness herbivores and native plants, and native herbivores and native plants. However, the effects of herbivore–plant nativeness on changes in plant abundance were reduced at high herbivore densities. Our mean reductions in aquatic plant abundance are greater than those reported in the literature for terrestrial plants, but lower than aquatic algae. Our findings highlight the need for a substantial shift in how biologists incorporate plant–herbivore interactions into theories of aquatic ecosystem structure and functioning. Currently, the failure to incorporate top‐down effects continues to hinder our capacity to understand and manage the ecological dynamics of habitats that contain aquatic plants.     

Root morphological and structural comparisons of introduced and native aquatic plant species in multiple substrates

Invasions of introduced plants are considered among the greatest threats to biodiversity worldwide. Aquatic habitats suffer invasion more frequently and extensively than do terrestrial habitats. Although the role of roots in plant anchoring and support is important, previous studies have focused much attention on the morphological traits of above-ground parts, with relatively less attention given to the root structures of aquatic plants. In this study, we aimed to compare differences in root morphological and structural traits between introduced and native plants in response to different substrates. We hypothesized that introduced aquatic plants have an advantage over native plants with regard to root trait values and plasticity. A total of six aquatic plants were used: Two invasive and one exotic noninvasive species were paired with their native counterparts according to life form (amphibious emergent, submerged and floating-leaved) and cultivated in substrates of clay, a clay/sand mixture (v:v = 1:1) or sand. Root morphological traits, topological indices and root relative distance plasticity indices were quantified. The results indicated that different substrates have various effects on the root traits of these six aquatic plants; the introduced plants generally exhibited higher plasticity than did their native counterparts of the same life form.     

Diversity and evolution of photosynthetic antenna systems in green plants

Photosynthetic antenna systems are mainly involved in the absorption of light energy required for photosynthesis. The typical green plants arrange chlorophylls a and b and carotenoids, including lutein and 9′‐cis neoxanthin, in their antenna systems; such antenna systems have prospered on earth. Therefore, these antenna systems should be highly evolved and should adapt to the photoenvironments in which plants grow. However, little information is available on the diversity and evolution of antenna systems in green plants as a whole. To approach this, the present study focused on the antenna systems in the Prasinophyceae, an assemblage of early diverging lineages of green plants and analyzed their photosynthetic pigments in detail. In the present study, various novel blue–green light‐absorbing siphonaxanthin series were detected in the early diverging species of the Prasinophyceae and the distribution of these carotenoids was revealed. Additionally, to clarify the evolution of antenna systems in the Ulvophyceae, a highly developed green algal group that specializes in inhabiting various aquatic environments, members of the Cladophorales belonging to this class were selected and their carotenoid compositions were determined to compare them with the molecular phylogenetic tree constructed on the basis of the 18S rRNA gene sequences of the Cladophorales. In this review, these data will be summarized and the remarkable variation of photosynthetic pigments will be presented. A possible scenario detailing the evolution of antenna systems in green plants will be elucidated.     

Excitation energy transfer and carotenoid radical cation formation in light harvesting complexes — A theoretical perspective

Light harvesting complexes have been identified in all chlorophyll-based photosynthetic organisms. Their major function is the absorption of light and its transport to the reaction centers, however, they are also involved in excess energy quenching, the so-called non-photochemical quenching (NPQ). In particular, electron transfer and the resulting formation of carotenoid radical cations have recently been discovered to play an important role during NPQ in green plants. Here, the results of our theoretical investigations of carotenoid radical cation formation in the major light harvesting complex LHC-II of green plants are reported. The carotenoids violaxanthin, zeaxanthin and lutein are considered as potential quenchers. In agreement with experimental results, it is shown that zeaxanthin cannot quench isolated LHC-II complexes. Furthermore, subtle structural differences in the two lutein binding pockets lead to substantial differences in the excited state properties of the two luteins. In addition, the formation mechanism of carotenoid radical cations in light harvesting complexes LH2 and LH1 of purple bacteria is studied. Here, the energetic position of the S₁ state of the involved carotenoids neurosporene, spheroidene, spheroidenone and spirilloxanthin seems to determine the occurrence of radical cations in these LHCs upon photo-excitation. An elaborate pump-deplete-probe experiment is suggested to challenge the proposed mechanism.     

Food quality, nutrient limitation of secondary production, and the strength of trophic cascades

Recent meta‐analyses confirm that the strength of trophic cascades (indirect positive effects of predators on plant biomass through control of herbivores) varies among ecosystem types. In particular, most terrestrial systems show smaller cascades than most aquatic ones. Ecologists still remain challenged to explain this variation. Here, we examine a food quality hypothesis which states that higher quality plants should promote stronger trophic cascades. Food quality involves two components: digestion resistance of plants and magnitude of stoichiometric imbalance between plants and herbivores (where stoichiometry involves ratios of nutrient:carbon ratio of tissues). Both factors vary among ecosystems and could mediate conversion efficiency of plants into new herbivores (and hence control of plants by herbivores). We explored the food quality hypothesis using two models, one assuming that plant stoichiometry is a fixed trait, the other one allowing this trait to vary dynamically (but with a minimal nutrient:carbon ratio of structural mass). Both models produce the same suite of results. First, as expected, systems with more easily digested plants promote stronger cascades. Second, contrary to expectations, higher (fixed or minimal) nutrient:carbon ratio of plants do not promote stronger cascades, largely because of the net result of ecosystem feedbacks. Still, the model with dynamic stoichiometry permits positive correlations of realized plant nutrient:carbon ratio and cascade strength (as predicted), mediated through digestion resistance. Third, lower nutrient:carbon ratio of herbivores promotes stronger cascades. However, this result likely cannot explain variation in cascade strength because nutrient:carbon stoichiometry of herbivores does not vary greatly between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Finally, we found that predation promotes nutrient limitation of herbivores. This finding highlights that food web processes, such as predation, can influence stoichiometry‐mediated interactions of plants and herbivores.     

植物育种学新领域——水生治污植物育种

利用水生治污植物治理水污染已经运用于实际生活之中,如藻类和高等植物.水生治污植物不仅可去除N、P营养物,还可以吸附金属离子,对于吸收有机物也起到了一定作用.虽然对于植物的育种有着越来越深的研究,但是对于水生治污植物,以更高效率吸收污染物为定向目的的育种方法和研究屈指可数,分析了水生治污育种新领域产生的客观条件和近期任务.     

湿地植被对北京地区蜻蜓生态分布的影响

蜻蜓目（Odonata）昆虫是半变态类（Hemimetabola）昆虫,它的一生经过卵、若虫和成虫3个阶段。和其他水生昆虫一样,蜻蜓目昆虫是淡水生物群落的重要组成部分,对淡水生态系统起到重要作用。蜻蜓目昆虫在其生活史中,取食、交配等活动离不开水生植物和水域附近的植被。为了研究蜻蜓栖息生境中的湿地植被特征对蜻蜓生态分布影响,对北京地区不同湿地类型的17块样地中296个样方分布的蜻蜓种类、多度以及湿地植被的特征和植物多样性进行调查,记录到蜻蜓6科26属36种,维管植物40科99属150种。应用TWINSPAN对蜻蜓种类和样地进行双向聚类分析,所有样地被划分成为四组。同时,将植被特征因子和湿地植物的多样性视为影响蜻蜓数量及分布的因子进行CCA分析。结果表明：湿地植物的丰富度与植物群落结构的完整性是影响蜻蜓分布的主要因素;各湿地植被特征因子对于蜻蜓生态分布的影响不一,依贡献率由大及小依次为浮水植物层盖度、湿生植物盖度、G1eason丰富度指数、沉水植物层盖度、G-F多样性指数、挺水植物层盖度。并且首次应用G-F多样性指数分析湿地植物的多样性。对于蜻蜓栖息地的保护、城市中对于湿地的兴建和改造也提出了相关保护建议。     

Biosynthesis of cyclic carotenoids: Biochemistry and molecular genetics of the reaction sequence

Cyclic carotenids are found in the photosynthetic apparatus of higher plants. The biosynthesis of these pigments has been under investigation for two decades. Especially with in vitro systems from chromoplasts and unicellular cynaobacteria. new information has been obtained on the enzymatic reactions in carotenogenesis. Very recently, progress in the identification and cloning of several genes from the carotenogenic pathway has been made with bacteria, cyanobacteria and fungi. The new developments in biochemistry and molecular biology of cyclic carotenoids are reviewed, and the consequences of the results obtained by molecular genetics on the general understanding of the biosynthetic pathway of carotenoids are discussed, especially the desaturation and isomerization reactions.     

Arsenic induced oxidative stress in plants

Arsenic is a highly toxic metalloid for all forms of life including plants. Arsenic enters in the plants through phosphate transporters as a phosphate analogue or through aquaglycoporins. Uptake of arsenic in plant tissues adversely affects the plant metabolism and leads to various physiological and structural disorders. Photosynthetic apparatus, cell division machinery, energy production, and redox status are the major section of plant system that are badly affected by As (V). Similarly As (III) can react with thiol (-SH) groups of enzymes and inhibits various metabolic processes. Arsenic is also known to induce oxidative stress directly by generating reactive oxygen species (ROS) during conversion of its valence forms or indirectly by inactivating antioxidant molecules through binding with their -SH groups. As-mediated oxidative stress causes cellular, molecular and physiological disturbances in various plant species. Activation of enzymatic antioxidants namely, superoxide dismutase (SOD), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), catalase (CAT) and glutathione reductase (GR), Glutathione s-transferase, glutathione peroxidase (GPX) as well as non antioxidant compounds such as, ascorbate, glutathione, carotenoids are reported to neutralize arsenic mediated oxidative stress. Understanding of biochemistry of arsenic toxicity would be beneficial for the development of arsenic tolerant crops and other economically important plants.     

Comparative Characterization of the Pigment Complex in Emergent, Floating, and Submerged Leaves of Hydrophytes

The content of chlorophylls (Chls) and carotenoids was studied in the leaves of 42 species of boreal aquatic plants with different degree of submergence (emergent, floating, and submerged) and isopalisade, dorsoventral, and homogenous types of mesophyll structure. Hydrophytes were shown to have a low Chl content (1–2 mg/g fr wt) and low Chls/carotenoids ratio (2.3–3.5) as compared to terrestrial plants. The pigment content per dry wt unit and unit leaf area was dependent on the type of mesophyll structure. It was a consequence of the changes in the parameters of leaf mesophyll structure characterizing the density of photosynthetic elements. In a sequence emergent floating submerged forms, the content of Chls and carotenoids decreased, and the photosynthetic capacity decreased due to a reduction in the chloroplast number per unit leaf area. Adaptation of submerged leaves to low illumination and slow CO₂ diffusion changed the functional properties of chloroplasts. An increase in the pigment content in the chloroplasts of submerged leaves (7 × 10^–9 mg Chl, 2 × 10^–9 mg carotenoids) as compared to emergent and floating leaves was accompanied by a decline in the photosynthetic capacity per Chl comprising 1.6 mg CO₂/(mg Chl h) versus 3.9 and 3.8 mg CO₂/(mg Chl h) in emergent and floating leaves, respectively.     

Functional analysis of combinations in astaxanthin biosynthesis genes from<Emphasis Type="Italic">Paracoccus haeundaensis</Emphasis>

Carotenoids are important natural pigments produced by many microorganisms and plants. We have previously reported the isolation of a new marine bacterium,Paracoccus haeundaensis, which produces carotenoids, mainly in the form of astaxanthin. The astaxanthin biosynthesis gene cluster, consisting of six carotenogenic genes, was cloned and characterized from this organism. Individual genes of the carotenoid biosynthesis gene cluster were functionally expressed inEscherichia coli and each gene product was purified to homogeneity. Their molecular characteristics, including enzymatic activities, were previously reported. Here, we report cloning the genes for crtE, crtEB, crtEBI, crtEBIY, crtEBIYZ, and crtEBI-YZW of theP. haeundaensis carotenoid biosynthesis genes inE. coli and verifying the production of the corresponding pathway intermediates. The carotenoids that accumulated in the transformed cells carrying these gene combinations were analyzed by chromatographic and spectroscopic methods.