TY - JOUR
T1 - Bioenergy sorghum maintains photosynthetic capacity in elevated ozone concentrations
AU - Li, Shuai
AU - Moller, Christopher A
AU - Mitchell, Noah G
AU - Lee, DoKyoung
AU - Ainsworth, Elizabeth A
N1 - Funding Information:
We thank Jesse McGrath, Aidan McMahon, John Ferguson, Nicole Choquette, Anthony Digrado, Chris Montes, Duncan Martin, Hannah Demler, Renan Umburanas, Seldon Kwafo and Yanquan Zhang for technical and field assistance. We also thank Dr Samuel B. Fernandes and Dr John Ferguson for providing plant seeds and Prof. Andrew Leakey for helpful discussions. We thank two anonymous referees for their helpful comments. This work was funded by the DOE Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation (U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Biological and Environmental Research under Award Number DE‐SC0018420). Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Energy or the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Mention of trade names or commercial products in this publication is solely for the purpose of providing specific information and does not imply recommendation or endorsement by the USDA. USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
PY - 2021/3
Y1 - 2021/3
N2 - Elevated tropospheric ozone concentration (O3) significantly reduces photosynthesis and productivity in several C4 crops including maize, switchgrass and sugarcane. However, it is unknown how O3 affects plant growth, development and productivity in sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.), an emerging C4 bioenergy crop. Here, we investigated the effects of elevated O3 on photosynthesis, biomass and nutrient composition of a number of sorghum genotypes over two seasons in the field using free-air concentration enrichment (FACE), and in growth chambers. We also tested if elevated O3 altered the relationship between stomatal conductance and environmental conditions using two common stomatal conductance models. Sorghum genotypes showed significant variability in plant functional traits, including photosynthetic capacity, leaf N content and specific leaf area, but responded similarly to O3. At the FACE experiment, elevated O3 did not alter net CO2 assimilation (A), stomatal conductance (gs), stomatal sensitivity to the environment, chlorophyll fluorescence and plant biomass, but led to reductions in the maximum carboxylation capacity of phosphoenolpyruvate and increased stomatal limitation to A in both years. These findings suggest that bioenergy sorghum is tolerant to O3 and could be used to enhance biomass productivity in O3 polluted regions.
AB - Elevated tropospheric ozone concentration (O3) significantly reduces photosynthesis and productivity in several C4 crops including maize, switchgrass and sugarcane. However, it is unknown how O3 affects plant growth, development and productivity in sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.), an emerging C4 bioenergy crop. Here, we investigated the effects of elevated O3 on photosynthesis, biomass and nutrient composition of a number of sorghum genotypes over two seasons in the field using free-air concentration enrichment (FACE), and in growth chambers. We also tested if elevated O3 altered the relationship between stomatal conductance and environmental conditions using two common stomatal conductance models. Sorghum genotypes showed significant variability in plant functional traits, including photosynthetic capacity, leaf N content and specific leaf area, but responded similarly to O3. At the FACE experiment, elevated O3 did not alter net CO2 assimilation (A), stomatal conductance (gs), stomatal sensitivity to the environment, chlorophyll fluorescence and plant biomass, but led to reductions in the maximum carboxylation capacity of phosphoenolpyruvate and increased stomatal limitation to A in both years. These findings suggest that bioenergy sorghum is tolerant to O3 and could be used to enhance biomass productivity in O3 polluted regions.
KW - biomass
KW - BWB model
KW - chlorophyll fluorescence
KW - MED model
KW - photosynthesis
KW - stomatal conductance
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U2 - 10.1111/pce.13962
DO - 10.1111/pce.13962
M3 - Article
C2 - 33245145
SN - 0140-7791
VL - 44
SP - 729
EP - 746
JO - Plant, Cell & Environment
JF - Plant, Cell & Environment
IS - 3
ER -