Figure - available from: Trees
This content is subject to copyright. Terms and conditions apply.
Morphological traits of the seedling root system of five eucalypt species grown with a nutrient solution of low (25 µM) and sufficient (500 µM) P concentration. a Total length (RL) of the root system, b surface area (RSA), c specific root length (SRL), d specific surface area (SRA), e root tissue density (RTD) and f average root diameter (ARD). Different letters indicate a significant difference among species for each P concentration, whereas the asterisk indicates a significant difference between P concentrations for each species, by the Scott-Knott test at 5% probability. Bars indicate standard error (n = 16)
Source publication
Key message
Eucalypt seedlings differently modulate root morphology in response to phosphorus availability, with changes in the length or density of root hairs being more common that changes in root length.
Abstract
Phosphorus (P) is an essential nutrient for plant growth and development and thus can restrict biomass accumulation when it is at low...
Similar publications
The Cd uptake efficiency based on total root length was 8e45% lower in a barley root hairless mutant than in its wild-type, indicating an important role of root hairs in Cd acquisition. a b s t r a c t The role of root hairs in Cd acquisition from soil was investigated in three pot experiments using a root hairless mutant (bald root barley, brb) an...
p>Most farmers determine the cutting of air layer seed in a corp through the amount of the growing roots from air layer itself. The roots can be an indicator of air layer cutting method in a corp. The roots, which are too old or too young, grow less optimal in the air layer seed after being transferred into another cultivated medium. It is necessar...
Two lines of black bean ( Phaseolus vulgaris L.), ‘70001’ and ‘Strain 39’, were grown at between-row spacings of 76, 61, and 46 cm. Cultivation treatments included an uncultivated check and a single cultivation at 1 of 3 plant growth stages: first trifoliolate leaf fully expanded; anthesis; or pod elongation. Root weight, shoot weight, and shoot:ro...
Aeschynanthus longicaulis is a gesneriad that can be grown as a hanging basket or indoor pot plant. Fertilization practice is rarely researched in relation to the genus Aeschynanthus cultivation. This pot experiment is conducted on soilless media to optimize the best NPK ratio for the vegetative growth of A. longicaulis. Four fertilization levels (...
The root system connects the plant with the soil, which is a key factor in determining the utilization of soil resources and plant growth potential. Solar radiation can change maize shoot and root growth and affect grain formation. In this study, the effects of different solar radiation conditions on root morphology of three maize cultivars XY335,...
Citations
... Paulo Mazzafera pmazza@unicamp.br 1 includes the secretion of organic acids, acid phosphatases, protons, and ribonuclease to solubilize or mineralize less accessible P forms in soils. Other changes include increased expression of high-affinity P-transporters, the increase in root-to-shoot ratio, the establishment of symbiotic relationships with mycorrhizal fungi (Tang et al. 2020;Rawat et al. 2021;Li et al. 2022), and strategies that increase soil exploration, such as foraging, changes in root architecture and growth or changes in the amount and length of root hairs (Trindade and Araújo 2014;Bichara et al. 2021). The set of these molecular strategies and structural and physiological changes in PSR involves not only cellular perception of phosphate in different organs but also interorgan communication of phosphate levels via systemic signalling (Doerner 2008;Rouached et al. 2010;Puga et al. 2017). ...
Most tropical forests show a low phosphorus (P) concentration in the soil, which limits plant growth and development. Phosphate transporters and regulatory elements, including transcription factors, are involved in the uptake and transport of P from the soil into root cells and other plant organs, and responses to plant P status. To better understand the mechanisms of the root-leaf signalling and remobilisation response to P supply, we applied the split-root technique on two-month-old seedlings of three eucalypt species: Eucalypts grandis, E. globulus, and E. tereticornis. The P treatments were: +P/+P, +P/-P, and -P/-P (+ P and–P indicate P supplementation and P depleted, respectively). P was supplied as 440 µM in the nutrient solution. Eucalypt plants were grown for six weeks and the expression of genes related to P uptake, transport, and utilization in roots and leaves were evaluated by RT-qPCR. The results show that P supply on one side of the root seemed to compensate for the lack of P on the other side in the + P/-P treatment, so the plant did not show a clear P stress response. P remobilization was likely to be the reason for this result. The results revealed significant variations in nutrient concentrations across treatments, with P availability notably impacting the concentrations of B and Cu in leaves. In the root system, variations in P influenced the uptake of other nutrients, such as potassium (K) and magnesium (Mg), in distinct ways among different species. Principal component analysis identified clear patterns of nutrient distribution across treatments and species. Genes related to the Phosphorus Starvation Response were mostly induced when plants were under low P availability, but the expression response was species-dependent. The results demonstrate a complex response of eucalyptus species to uneven P distribution in the root environment, influencing the expression of genes related to P absorption, transport, and metabolism. These findings offer valuable insights into the mechanisms plants employ to adapt to variations in P availability and have important implications for the nutritional management of forest species.
... The root-shoot biomass ratio changed; however, the belowground biomass did not change in response to decreased P content of the growing substrate 77 . Research indicated that under low P stress, the growth of eucalyptus was inhibited, with a significant reduction in stem and root biomass 78 . Under P deficiency conditions, the total biomass decreased in several genotypes 79 . ...
This study aims to explore the low phosphorus (P) tolerance of saplings from different Gleditsia sinensis Lam. families. It also seeks to screen for Gleditsia sinensis families with strong low P tolerance and identify key indicators for evaluating their tolerance. This research provides a foundation for the breeding of superior families of Gleditsia sinensis and the study of mechanisms underlying low P tolerance. Using saplings from 30 Gleditsia sinensis families as the research subjects, a sand culture pot experiment was conducted. This study set up low P treatment (0.01 mmol L⁻¹) and normal P treatment (1 mmol L⁻¹). Twenty-five indicators including growth morphology, biomass, root morphology, and P content were measured. The low P tolerance coefficient was used as the basic data for assessing the low P tolerance of Gleditsia sinensis. The fuzzy comprehensive evaluation method was employed to comprehensively assess the low P tolerance types of Gleditsia sinensis a stepwise regression model was established to identify the key evaluation indicators for low P tolerance. The results indicate that low P stress reduced plant height, stem diameter, and biomass in most Gleditsia sinensis families, but increased the root morphological indicators, root-shoot ratio and PUE of various organs. Principal component analysis transformed the 25 indicators into 6 independent comprehensive indicators, with a cumulative contribution rate of 86.743%. The fuzzy comprehensive evaluation method calculated a comprehensive evaluation value (D value), enabling the screening of Gleditsia sinensis families into low P tolerant and low P sensitive types. Cluster analysis grouped the 30 Gleditsia sinensis families into 4 types. Among them, F13, F10, F9, F18, F15, and F28 were classified as low P tolerant types; F6, F23, F3, F17, F20, F2, F12, F11, F16, F8, F5, F27, F1, and F26 were categorized as intermediate types; F30, F7, F22, F4, F19, F29, F24, F14 and F25 were considered low P sensitive types, and F21 was classified as extremely low P sensitive types. The stepwise regression analysis identified the indicators stem diameter, total root volume, shoot dry weight, total root projection area, and leaf P content as the key factors for discriminating the low P tolerance of Gleditsia sinensis. The regression model is as follows: D=-0.005 + 0.323 stem diameter *+0.154 * total root volume + 0.196* shoot dry weight + 0.139* total root projection area − 0.112* leaf P content. In summary, low P stress inhibited the growth of Gleditsia sinensis saplings, but it increased the root morphological indicators, root-shoot ratio and PUE of various organs to cope with low P environments. The screening identified F13, F10, F9, F18, F15, and F28 as low P tolerant Gleditsia sinensis families. The evaluation indicators for low P tolerance in Gleditsia sinensis were identified as stem diameter, total root volume, shoot dry weight, total root projection area and leaf P content.
Supplementary Information
The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1038/s41598-024-82071-w.
... Plants can also adapt to low P conditions by altering root morphology, including changes in root configuration such as total root surface area and total root length. These changes increase the contact area between roots and soil, enhancing the activation, transport, and distribution of insoluble P. This, in turn, improves the efficiency of P absorption by plants [30][31][32]. The results of this study indicate that under LP stress, there are significant changes in root morphology between tolerant and sensitive families. ...
In order to elucidate the response mechanisms of Gleditsia sinensis Lam. with different phosphorus (P) efficiencies to low P stress, this study set up low P treatment (0.01 mmol·L⁻¹, LP) and normal P treatment (1.00 mmol·L⁻¹, NP). The experimental materials included low P-tolerant G. sinensis families F10 and F13, and low P-sensitive G. sinensis families F21 and F29. This study aimed to investigate the effects of low P stress on the agronomic traits, nutrient content, and physiological indices of G. sinensis seedlings with different P efficiencies. The results showed that the agronomic traits, such as plant height, stem diameter, and so on, of the low P-tolerant family, were significantly higher than those of the low P-sensitive family under low P stress. Low P stress significantly increased the total root length, total root surface area, total root projected area, total root volume, and main root diameter of the tolerant family. The tolerant family exhibited significantly higher net photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance, intercellular CO2 concentration, and transpiration rate compared to the sensitive family. Low P stress significantly increased the activities of protective enzymes, acid phosphatase activity, and malondialdehyde content in the low P-tolerant family. The tolerant family exhibited higher P absorption efficiency and P utilization efficiency compared to the sensitive family. Low P stress significantly increased the P utilization efficiency of the tolerant family. In summary, compared to the sensitive family, the low P-tolerant G. sinensis family has stronger reactive oxygen species scavenging ability and can accumulate more osmotic regulatory substances to maintain cell osmotic potential and better protect cells; this improves P utilization efficiency and nutrient content, thereby alleviating the harm caused by low P stress and maintaining normal growth and metabolism.
... Compared with soil physical properties, soil chemical properties can induce the exploration of roots in the soil environment; for instance, a higher content of soil organic carbon (SOC) in the soil can increase the distribution range of roots in the soil (Meier et al. 2020;Tuckmantel et al. 2017); soil total nitrogen (TN) and total potassium (TK) may be critical abiotic factors for root diameter increase (Jing et al. 2021). In addition, some studies have found that the trees of excellent provenances have higher RB in the soil with sufficient water, while lower pH and soil available phosphorus (AP) will inhibit the growth of RSA and RL (Varghese et al. 2017;Zeleznik et al. 2019;Chen et al. 2020;Bichara et al. 2021), which indicates that the genotypes with superior root traits in one environment may not be equally excellent in other soil environments (Theodorou and Bowen 1993;Tuckmantel et al. 2017). Therefore, understanding the relationship between tree provenances and soils with different lithologies will help to screen stable forest resources for sustainable afforestation in the future. ...
Aims
It is essential to explore tree root development, dynamics and its control factors to improve the productivity of plantations. Tree provenance and soil lithology may jointly regulate root growth in subtropical plantations, but this relationship has not yet been quantified.
Methods
We used a split-plot design with tree provenances (DY, GP, CY, SG, TM) and soil lithology (basalt, quartz sandstone, feldspathic quartz sandstone, blastopsammite) to determine the root growth of 4-year-old Masson pine seedlings in combination.
Results
Our results showed an interaction effect between tree provenances and soil lithology on root surface area (RSA), root length (RL), root volume (RV), root biomass (RB), specific root surface area (SRA) and specific root length (SRL). The RV, RSA, RL, RB, and SRL of the DY provenance were higher than those of the other provenances due to site conditions similar to the planting site (e.g., climate, altitude, and latitude); the RSA, RV, SRL, SRA and RB of DY provenance on the soil with lithology of blastopsammite were significantly lower than those of feldspar quartz sandstone and quartz sandstone, which indicates that the root growth is also affected by soil lithology. Furthermore, soil bulk density, total soil potassium, soil organic carbon and soil particle composition were the main factors affecting root growth in basalt, quartz sandstone, feldspathic quartz sandstone and blastopsammite soil, respectively, indicating that the required soil properties by plants changes with changes in the soil environment.
Conclusions
We conclude that provenance and soil lithology jointly drive the root growth of young subtropical plantations.
... Recent years, more researchers have reported the physiological responses of Eucalyptus species to low Pi stress (Wu et al., 2014;Niu et al., 2015;Bahar et al., 2018), and focused on the effects of different P levels on plant biomass and P content (Xu et al., 2001;Standish et al., 2007;Bichara et al., 2021), but little study on the molecular mechanisms of The promoter regions of RiPT1, RiPT2 and RiPT3 containing the cis-acting elements CACGTG/T named P RiPT1 , P RiPT2 , and P RiPT3 . The identification of interaction between RiPho4 and the promoter of RiPT1, RiPT2, or RiPT3 under the screened even higher AbA inhibition concentration indicated in Fig. S4. ...
Introduction:
Phosphorus (P) is one of the most important nutrient elements for plant growth and development. Under P starvation, arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi can promote phosphate (Pi) uptake and homeostasis within host plants. However, the underlying mechanisms by which AM fungal symbiont regulates the AM symbiotic Pi acquisition from soil under P starvation are largely unknown. Here, we identify a HLH domain containing transcription factor RiPho4 from Rhizophagus irregularis.
Methods:
To investigate the biological functions of the RiPho4, we combined the subcellular localization and Yeast One-Hybrid (Y1H) experiments in yeasts with gene expression and virus-induced gene silencing approach during AM symbiosis.
Results:
The approach during AM symbiosis. The results indicated that RiPho4 encodes a conserved transcription factor among different fungi and is induced during the in planta phase. The transcription of RiPho4 is significantly up-regulated by P starvation. The subcellular localization analysis revealed that RiPho4 is located in the nuclei of yeast cells during P starvation. Moreover, knock-down of RiPho4 inhibits the arbuscule development and mycorrhizal Pi uptake under low Pi conditions. Importantly, RiPho4 can positively regulate the downstream components of the phosphate (PHO) pathway in R. irregularis.
Discussion:
In summary, these new findings reveal that RiPho4 acts as a transcriptional activator in AM fungus to maintain arbuscule development and regulate Pi uptake and homeostasis in the AM symbiosis during Pi starvation.
... Plants respond to P limitation in several ways, including changes in the architecture of the root system and alterations of metabolic processes (Jones et al., 2018). Morphological and physiological changes of the root system in response to P deficiency are often related to developmental strategies which allow a more efficient exploration and mining of soil P (Niu et al., 2013) as shown in eucalyptus (Bichara et al., 2021). Plants may increase the root-shoot ratio by reducing and enhancing shoot and root growth, respectively (Niu et al., 2013;Lambers et al., 2015a,b;Tian and Liao, 2015) or yet establishing beneficial mutualistic associations with mycorrhizal fungi (Lambers et al., 2008). ...
Phosphorus (P) is a vital nutrient for plant growth. P availability is generally low in soils, and plant responses to low P availability need to be better understood. In a previous study, we studied the growth and physiological responses of 24 species to low P availability in the soil and verified of eucalypts, five (Eucalyptus acmenoides, E. grandis, E. globulus, E. tereticornis, and Corymbia maculata) contrasted regarding their efficiency and responsiveness to soil P availability. Here, we obtained the metabolomic and lipidomic profile of leaves, stems, and roots from these species growing under low (4.5 mg dm–3) and sufficient (10.8 mg dm–3) P in the soil. Disregarding the level of P in the soils, P allocation was always higher in the stems. However, when grown in the P-sufficient soil, the stems steadily were the largest compartment of the total plant P. Under low P, the relative contents of primary metabolites, such as amino acids, TCA cycle intermediates, organic acids and carbohydrates, changed differently depending on the species. Additionally, phosphorylated metabolites showed enhanced turnover or reductions. While photosynthetic efficiencies were not related to higher biomass production, A/Ci curves showed that reduced P availability increased the eucalypt species’ Vcmax, Jmax and photosynthetic P-use efficiency. Plants of E. acmenoides increased galactolipids and sulfolipids in leaves more than other eucalypt species, suggesting that lipid remodelling can be a strategy to cope with the P shortage in this species. Our findings offer insights to understand genotypic efficiency among eucalypt species to accommodate primary metabolism under low soil P availability and eventually be used as biochemical markers for breeding programs.
Phosphorus is an essential macro-nutrient that often limits plant productivity in agricultural soils, particularly in
alkaline-calcareous soils. In these soils, phosphorus availability is primarily controlled by sorption and precipitation reactions. This paper critically reviews and synthesizes the principal strategies through which rhizosphere
processes modulate phosphorus bioavailability in such typical soils, providing a valuable resource for researchers
and practitioners on the current state of knowledge. The review also emphasizes the importance of rhizosphere
processes and their applications in developing sustainable farming practices. It focuses on recent advancements
in root exudation, anatomical and molecular mechanisms, and their interactions with key agricultural practices.
Furthermore, it synthesizes and discusses cutting-edge rhizosphere research, pinpointing opportunities for future
explorations. Several knowledge gaps were identified. For instance, there is a paucity of information regarding
the trade-offs between root morphological and physiological traits (e.g., root exudates) in response to phosphorus deficiency. Additionally, metabolomics needs to be integrated to unravel the molecular mechanisms
involved in rhizosphere interactions. Further research is also required to identify specific plant and microbial
traits that contribute to rhizosphere acidification in calcareous soils.
In regions of low soil phosphorus (P) availability, such as many tropical and subtropical regions, the cultivation of eucalypts is common due to their adaptation to P-constrained soils. As in other trees, the molecular mechanisms underlying the phosphate starvation response (PSR) in eucalypts remain poorly understood. This study aimed to elucidate the molecular responses associated with PSR and assess the efficiency of P acquisition in five eucalypt species: Eucalyptus acmenoides, E. grandis, E. globulus, E. tereticornis, and Corymbia maculata. A greenhouse experiment was carried out in soil/substrate with low resin-extractable P (4.5 mg kg−1, Low P) and sufficient P (10.8 mg kg−1, Sufficient P) availability. After nine months growing in such conditions, various parameters were assessed, such as biomass production, P concentrations, P uptake efficiency (PUpE), and the expression of PSR-related genes. Overall, eucalypt plants exhibited a relatively weak response to low P availability, with slight variations in biomass production, P concentration, and PSR gene expression. C. maculata plants exhibited the highest PUpE under low P, while E. globulus exhibited the lowest. Among PSR-related genes, LPR1/2 in the roots of E. grandis, PDR2 in the roots of C. maculata, and phosphate transporters PHT1;6 and PHT1;8 in the roots of E. globulus, along with PHT1;12 in the roots of E. tereticornis, were induced under low P availability. Elevated PHT1 transcripts in the roots under sufficient P conditions, despite adequate leaf P concentrations, suggest potential interactions with other nutrient availability such as nitrogen, magnesium, and calcium, as well as symbiotic associations. Additionally, the upregulation SQD1 gene involved in membrane lipid remodeling in leaves of E. tereticornis, E. acmenoides, and C. maculata under low P suggests an improved P utilization efficiency. This study reveals the intricate and multifaceted nature of eucalypt responses to soil P availability. Despite the low P concentrations, eucalypt plants maintained foliar concentrations similar to those in the P-sufficient treatment suggesting a complex interplay of factors influencing PSR including nutrient balance.
Link for 50 free online copies:
https://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/SFPPZ2QWPDEVAP6FQKKZ/full?target=10.1080/00380768.2022.2050662
