PIP1 plasma membrane aquaporins in tobacco: from cellular effects to function in plants

The molecular functions of several aquaporins are well characterized (e.g., by analysis of aquaporin-expressing Xenopus oocytes). However, their significance in the physiology of water transport in multicellular organisms remains uncertain. The tobacco plasma membrane aquaporin NtAQP1 was used to elucidate this issue. By comparing antisense plants that were inhibited in NtAQP1 expression with control plants, we found evidence for NtAQP1 function in cellular and whole-plant water relations. The consequences of a decrease in cellular water permeability were determined by measurement of transpiration rate and stem and leaf water potential as well as growth experiments under extreme soil water depletion. Plants impaired in NtAQP1 expression showed reduced root hydraulic conductivity and lower water stress resistance. In conclusion, our results emphasize the importance of symplastic aquaporin-mediated water transport in whole-plant water relations.     

A comparison of two methods for measuring vessel length in woody plants

Vessel lengths are important to plant hydraulic studies, but are not often reported because of the time required to obtain measurements. This paper compares the fast dynamic method (air injection method) with the slower but traditional static method (rubber injection method). Our hypothesis was that the dynamic method should yield a larger mean vessel length than the static method. Vessel length was measured by both methods in current year stems of Acer, Populus, Vitis and Quercus representing short‐ to long‐vessel species. The hypothesis was verified. The reason for the consistently larger values of vessel length is because the dynamic method measures air flow rates in cut open vessels. The Hagen–Poiseuille law predicts that the air flow rate should depend on the product of number of cut open vessels times the fourth power of vessel diameter. An argument is advanced that the dynamic method is more appropriate because it measures the length of the vessels that contribute most to hydraulic flow. If all vessels had the same vessel length distribution regardless of diameter, then both methods should yield the same average length. This supports the hypothesis that large‐diameter vessels might be longer than short‐diameter vessels in most species.     

Hydraulic conductivity of branch junctions in three temperate tree species

Summary Hydraulic conductivities were measured in branch junctions and in the proximal segments of Quercus velutina Lam., Acer saccharum Marsh., and Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carr. In all three species, the basal proximal segment was more conductive than the junction by a factor of 1.1–1.5. There was no consistent pattern for the distal proximal segments, where the conductivities were higher, lower, or the same as the junction. These data are discussed in terms of Martin H. Zimmermann's concept of plant segmentation. It is concluded that junction constrictions to water flow contribute less to plant segmentation than the variation in leaf specific conductivity in the crown of these species.     

Moving beyond the cambium necrosis hypothesis of post-fire tree mortality: cavitation and deformation of xylem in forest fires

? It is widely assumed that post-fire tree mortality results from necrosis of phloem and vascular cambium in stems, despite strong evidence that reduced xylem conductivity also plays an important role. ? In this study, experiments with Populus balsamifera were used to demonstrate two mechanisms by which heat reduces the hydraulic conductivity of xylem: air seed cavitation and conduit wall deformation. Heat effects on air seed cavitation were quantified using air injection experiments that isolate potential temperature-dependent changes in sap surface tension and pit membrane pore diameters. Heat effects on conduit wall structure were demonstrated using air conductivity measurements and light microscopy. ? Heating increased vulnerability to cavitation because sap surface tension varies inversely with temperature. Heating did not affect cavitation via changes in pit membrane pore diameters, but did cause significant reductions in xylem air conductivity that were associated with deformation of conduit walls (probably resulting from thermal softening of viscoelastic cell wall polymers). ? Additional work is required to understand the relative roles of cavitation and deformation in the reduction of xylem conductivity, and how reduced xylem conductivity in roots, stems, and branches correlates and interacts with foliage and root necroses to cause tree mortality. Future research should also examine how heat necrosis of ray parenchyma cells affects refilling of embolisms that occur during and after the fire event.     

The impact of long-term water stress on relative growth rate and morphology of needles and shoots of Metasequoia glyptostroboides seedlings: research toward identifying mechanistic models

Leaf morphology in the upper canopy of trees tends to be different from that lower down. The effect of long‐term water stress on leaf growth and morphology was studied in seedlings of Metasequoia glyptostroboides to understand how tree height might affect leaf morphology in larger trees. Tree height increases water stress on growing leaves through increased hydraulic resistance to water flow and increased gravitational potential, hence we assume that water stress imposed by soil dehydration will have an effect equivalent to stress induced by height. Seedlings were subjected to well‐watered and two constant levels of long‐term water stress treatments. Drought treatment significantly reduced final needle count, area and mass per area (leaf mass area, LMA) and increased needle density. Needles from water‐stressed plants had lower maximum volumetric elastic modulus (ε^max), osmotic potential at full turgor ( and at zero turgor ( than those from well‐watered plants. Palisade and spongy mesophyll cell size and upper epidermal cell size decreased significantly in drought treatments. Needle relative growth rate, needle length and cell sizes were linear functions of the daily average water potential at the time of leaf growth (r² 0.88–0.999). We conclude that water stress alone does mimic the direction and magnitude of changes in leaf morphology observed in tall trees. The results are discussed in terms of various models for leaf growth rate.     

Hes1 Increases the Invasion Ability of Colorectal Cancer Cells via the STAT3-MMP14 Pathway

The Notch pathway contributes to self-renewal of tumor-initiating cell and inhibition of normal colonic epithelial cell differentiation. Deregulated expression of Notch1 and Jagged1 is observed in colorectal cancer. Hairy/enhancer of split (HES) family, the most characterized targets of Notch, involved in the development of many cancers. In this study, we explored the role of Hes1 in the tumorigenesis of colorectal cancer. Knocking down Hes1 induced CRC cell senescence and decreased the invasion ability, whereas over-expression of Hes1 increased STAT3 phosphorylation activity and up-regulated MMP14 protein level. We further explored the expression of Hes1 in human colorectal cancer and found high Hes1 mRNA expression is associated with poor prognosis in CRC patients. These findings suggest that Hes1 regulates the invasion ability through the STAT3-MMP14 pathway in CRC cells and high Hes1 expression is a predictor of poor prognosis of CRC.     

Does freezing and dynamic flexing of frozen branches impact the cavitation resistance of Malus domestica and the Populus clone Walker?

Frost damage to the xylem conduits of trees is a phenomenon of eco-physiological importance. It is often documented in terms of the percentage loss of conductivity (PLC), an indicator of air filling of the conduits. However, trees that refill their conduits in spring could be impacted more by damage to the conduits that reduce cavitation resistance, making them more susceptible to future drought events. We investigated whether ice formation, dynamic flexing of frozen branches or freeze–thaw events could reduce the cavitation resistance (cause “frost fatigue”) in first-year shoots of apple (Malus domestica) and clonal hybrid cottonwood (Walker). Frost fatigue was measured in terms of P₅₀ (the negative xylem pressure required to cause a 50 % loss of conductivity). All treatment groups showed significant frost fatigue, with the exception of the pre-flushed, constantly frozen poplar branches. The P₅₀ following freeze treatments was approximately 50 % of the pre-freeze values. The effect tended to be greater in freeze–thawed branches. Dynamic bending of the branches had no effect on either PLC or P₅₀. In three out of four cases, there was a significant correlation between P₅₀ and PLC. Frost fatigue occurred in both apple and poplar, two unrelated species with different drought and frost tolerances, suggesting that it may be a widespread phenomenon that could impact the ecophysiology of temperate forests.     

A simple powerful bivariate test for two sample location problems in experimental and observational studies

Background  

In many areas of medical research, a bivariate analysis is desirable because it simultaneously tests two response variables that are of equal interest and importance in two populations. Several parametric and nonparametric bivariate procedures are available for the location problem but each of them requires a series of stringent assumptions such as specific distribution, affine-invariance or elliptical symmetry.