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The New Phytologist Apr 2023Although leaves are considered the main site for photosynthesis, other green nonfoliar tissues can carry out considerable amounts of photosynthetic carbon assimilation.... (Review)
Review
Although leaves are considered the main site for photosynthesis, other green nonfoliar tissues can carry out considerable amounts of photosynthetic carbon assimilation. With photosynthesis, a potential target for improving crop productivity, physiology and contribution of nonfoliar tissues to overall plant carbon acquisition is gaining increasing attention. This review will provide an overview of nonfoliar photosynthesis, the role of stomata in these tissues and methodologies for quantification and the contribution to overall carbon gain.
Topics: Plant Stomata; Carbon Dioxide; Plant Leaves; Photosynthesis; Carbon
PubMed: 36509710
DOI: 10.1111/nph.18671 -
The Biochemical Journal Oct 2019In nature, light availability for photosynthesis can undergo massive changes on a very short timescale. Photosynthesis in such dynamic light environments requires that... (Review)
Review
In nature, light availability for photosynthesis can undergo massive changes on a very short timescale. Photosynthesis in such dynamic light environments requires that plants can respond swiftly. Expanding our knowledge of the rapid responses that underlie dynamic photosynthesis is an important endeavor: it provides insights into nature's design of a highly dynamic energy conversion system and hereby can open up new strategies for improving photosynthesis in the field. The present review focuses on three processes that have previously been identified as promising engineering targets for enhancing crop yield by accelerating dynamic photosynthesis, all three of them involving or being linked to processes in the chloroplast, i.e. relaxation of non-photochemical quenching, Calvin-Benson-Bassham cycle enzyme activation/deactivation and dynamics of stomatal conductance. We dissect these three processes on the functional and molecular level to reveal gaps in our understanding and critically discuss current strategies to improve photosynthesis in the field.
Topics: Chloroplasts; Environment; Light; Photosynthesis; Plants
PubMed: 31654058
DOI: 10.1042/BCJ20190134 -
The New Phytologist Jan 2019Contents Summary 32 I. The importance of plant carbon metabolism for climate change 32 II. Rising atmospheric CO2 and carbon metabolism 33 III. Rising temperatures and... (Review)
Review
Contents Summary 32 I. The importance of plant carbon metabolism for climate change 32 II. Rising atmospheric CO2 and carbon metabolism 33 III. Rising temperatures and carbon metabolism 37 IV. Thermal acclimation responses of carbon metabolic processes can be best understood when studied together 38 V. Will elevated CO2 offset warming-induced changes in carbon metabolism? 40 VI. No plant is an island: water and nutrient limitations define plant responses to climate drivers 41 VII. Conclusions 42 Acknowledgements 42 References 42 Appendix A1 48 SUMMARY: Plant carbon metabolism is impacted by rising CO concentrations and temperatures, but also feeds back onto the climate system to help determine the trajectory of future climate change. Here we review how photosynthesis, photorespiration and respiration are affected by increasing atmospheric CO concentrations and climate warming, both separately and in combination. We also compile data from the literature on plants grown at multiple temperatures, focusing on net CO assimilation rates and leaf dark respiration rates measured at the growth temperature (A and R , respectively). Our analyses show that the ratio of A to R is generally homeostatic across a wide range of species and growth temperatures, and that species that have reduced A at higher growth temperatures also tend to have reduced R , while species that show stimulations in A under warming tend to have higher R in the hotter environment. These results highlight the need to study these physiological processes together to better predict how vegetation carbon metabolism will respond to climate change.
Topics: Acclimatization; Carbon; Carbon Dioxide; Climate Change; Photosynthesis; Plant Transpiration; Plants; Temperature
PubMed: 29983005
DOI: 10.1111/nph.15283 -
International Journal of Molecular... Feb 2023Photosynthesis is a process that provides the continuous income of energy needed to sustain life on our planet [...].
Photosynthesis is a process that provides the continuous income of energy needed to sustain life on our planet [...].
Topics: Photosynthesis
PubMed: 36901785
DOI: 10.3390/ijms24054355 -
Cells Dec 2022Photosynthesis is a unique process that has shaped life on our planet and created the conditions for all known life forms [...].
Photosynthesis is a unique process that has shaped life on our planet and created the conditions for all known life forms [...].
Topics: Photosynthesis; Stress, Physiological
PubMed: 36552717
DOI: 10.3390/cells11243953 -
Current Biology : CB May 2020Wang and Jonikas take a look at an unconventional organelle, the pyrenoid.
Wang and Jonikas take a look at an unconventional organelle, the pyrenoid.
Topics: Algal Proteins; Carbon Dioxide; Chlamydomonas reinhardtii; Organelles; Photosynthesis; Plant Cells; Plants
PubMed: 32428480
DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.02.051 -
The New Phytologist Feb 2020Oxygenic phototrophs have played a fundamental role in Earth's history by enabling the rise of atmospheric oxygen (O ) and paving the way for animal evolution.... (Review)
Review
Oxygenic phototrophs have played a fundamental role in Earth's history by enabling the rise of atmospheric oxygen (O ) and paving the way for animal evolution. Understanding the origins of oxygenic photosynthesis and Cyanobacteria is key when piecing together the events around Earth's oxygenation. It is likely that photosynthesis evolved within bacterial lineages that are not extant, so it can be challenging when studying the early history of photosynthesis. Recent genomic and molecular evolution studies have transformed our understanding about the evolution of photosynthetic reaction centres and the evolution of Cyanobacteria. The evidence reviewed here highlights some of the most recent advances on the origin of photosynthesis both at the genomic and gene family levels.
Topics: Biological Evolution; Cyanobacteria; Oxygen; Photosynthesis; Photosynthetic Reaction Center Complex Proteins; Protein Conformation
PubMed: 31598981
DOI: 10.1111/nph.16249 -
Journal of Experimental Botany May 2022Gas exchange techniques revolutionized plant research and advanced understanding, including associated fluxes and efficiencies, of photosynthesis, photorespiration, and... (Review)
Review
Gas exchange techniques revolutionized plant research and advanced understanding, including associated fluxes and efficiencies, of photosynthesis, photorespiration, and respiration of plants from cellular to ecosystem scales. These techniques remain the gold standard for inferring photosynthetic rates and underlying physiology/biochemistry, although their utility for high-throughput phenotyping (HTP) of photosynthesis is limited both by the number of gas exchange systems available and the number of personnel available to operate the equipment. Remote sensing techniques have long been used to assess ecosystem productivity at coarse spatial and temporal resolutions, and advances in sensor technology coupled with advanced statistical techniques are expanding remote sensing tools to finer spatial scales and increasing the number and complexity of phenotypes that can be extracted. In this review, we outline the photosynthetic phenotypes of interest to the plant science community and describe the advances in high-throughput techniques to characterize photosynthesis at spatial scales useful to infer treatment or genotypic variation in field-based experiments or breeding trials. We will accomplish this objective by presenting six lessons learned thus far through the development and application of proximal/remote sensing-based measurements and the accompanying statistical analyses. We will conclude by outlining what we perceive as the current limitations, bottlenecks, and opportunities facing HTP of photosynthesis.
Topics: Ecosystem; Genotype; Phenotype; Photosynthesis
PubMed: 35218184
DOI: 10.1093/jxb/erac077 -
Current Opinion in Microbiology Apr 2024Cyanobacteria evolved the oxygenic photosynthesis to generate organic matter from CO and sunlight, and they were responsible for the production of oxygen in the Earth's... (Review)
Review
Cyanobacteria evolved the oxygenic photosynthesis to generate organic matter from CO and sunlight, and they were responsible for the production of oxygen in the Earth's atmosphere. This made them a model for photosynthetic organisms, since they are easier to study than higher plants. Early studies suggested that only a minority among cyanobacteria might assimilate organic compounds, being considered mostly autotrophic for decades. However, compelling evidence from marine and freshwater cyanobacteria, including toxic strains, in the laboratory and in the field, has been obtained in the last decades: by using physiological and omics approaches, mixotrophy has been found to be a more widespread feature than initially believed. Furthermore, dominant clades of marine cyanobacteria can take up organic compounds, and mixotrophy is critical for their survival in deep waters with very low light. Hence, mixotrophy seems to be an essential trait in the metabolism of most cyanobacteria, which can be exploited for biotechnological purposes.
Topics: Cyanobacteria; Photosynthesis; Atmosphere; Oxygen
PubMed: 38325247
DOI: 10.1016/j.mib.2024.102432 -
Essays in Biochemistry Jul 2021
Topics: Arabidopsis; Photosynthesis
PubMed: 34309653
DOI: 10.1042/EBC-2016-0016C_EDN