Leaf expansion and cell division are affected by reducing absorbed light before but not after the decline in cell division rate in the sunflower leaf

The effect of absorbed photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) on leaf expansion is a key issue for analysing the phenotypic variability between plants and for modelling feedback loops. Expansion and epidermal cell division in leaf 8 of sunflower were analysed in a series of five experiments where absorbed photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) was reduced either by shading or by covering part of the leaf area. These treatments were imposed at different times during leaf development. Expansion and cell division were affected by a reduction in absorbed PPFD only in the first part of leaf development, while the leaf area was less than 2% of its final value and while absolute expansion rate was slow. In contrast, it was not affected if imposed later when the leaf was visible and absolute expansion rate was at maximum. A reduction in absorbed PPFD caused the same reduction in expansion and in cell division whether it was due to a reduction in incident PPFD or to a reduction in photosynthetic leaf area, suggesting that carbon metabolism was involved. Relative expansion rate recovered to control levels when relative division rate began to decline, in all experiments and in all zones of a leaf. This was probably linked to the source–sink transition, after which the leaf had such a high priority in carbon allocation that it was largely insensitive to changes in absorbed PPFD. The final leaf area was therefore closely related to the cumulated PPFD absorbed by the plant from leaf initiation to the end of exponential cell division.