Xylem conduit deformation across vascular plants: an evolutionary spandrel or protective valve?

• Published in: The New phytologist Vol. 237; no. 4; pp. 1242 - 1255
• Main Authors: Zhang, Yong‐Jiang, Hochberg, Uri, Rockwell, Fulton E., Ponomarenko, Alexandre, Chen, Ya‐Jun, Manandhar, Anju, Graham, Adam C., Holbrook, N. Michele
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.02.2023
• Subjects: Bamboo; bamboos; Circuit breakers; conduit collapse; Cycadopsida; Deformation; Dehydration; Embolism; Ferns; ferns and fern allies; Flowers & plants; Ginkgo; Grasses; Hydraulic equipment; Hydraulic systems; Leaves; Plant Leaves; Plants; Plants (botany); Poaceae; Rigid pipes; Species; Survival; Tracheophyta; transient water stress; Transpiration; Upstream; vapor pressure deficit; Veins (plant anatomy); Water; Water potential; water stress; water transport; Xylem; xylem vessels; conduit collapse; xylem vessels; water transport; vapor pressure deficit; water stress; embolism; transient water stress

Summary The hydraulic system of vascular plants and its integrity is essential for plant survival. To transport water under tension, the walls of xylem conduits must approximate rigid pipes. Against this expectation, conduit deformation has been reported in the leaves of a few species and hypothesiz...