Plasticity of photosynthetic heat tolerance in plants adapted to thermally contrasting biomes

• Published in: Plant, cell and environment Vol. 41; no. 6; pp. 1251 - 1262
• Main Authors: Zhu, Lingling, Bloomfield, Keith J., Hocart, Charles H., Egerton, John J.G., O'Sullivan, Odhran S., Penillard, Aurore, Weerasinghe, Lasantha K., Atkin, Owen K.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.06.2018
• Subjects: Acclimation; Acclimatization; adaptation; Chlorophyll; Control stability; Ecosystems; fatty acids; Fluorescence; Greenhouses; Heat tolerance; Heat waves; High temperature; Indigenous species; membranes; phenotypic plasticity; Photosynthesis; Photosynthetic apparatus; Photosystem II; Plants (botany); Plasticity; Relative abundance; Seasonal variations; Temperature dependence; Temperature effects; Temperature tolerance; thermal tolerance; membranes; photosystem II; thermal tolerance; fatty acids; adaptation; phenotypic plasticity; high temperature
• ISSN: 0140-7791; 1365-3040; 1365-3040
• DOI: 10.1111/pce.13133

In many biomes, plants are subject to heatwaves, potentially causing irreversible damage to the photosynthetic apparatus. Field surveys have documented global, temperature‐dependent patterns in photosynthetic heat tolerance (PHT); however, it remains unclear if these patterns reflect acclimation in PHT or inherent differences among species adapted to contrasting habitats. To address these unknowns, we quantified seasonal variations in Tcrit (high temperature where minimal chlorophyll‐a fluorescence rises rapidly, reflecting disruption to photosystem II) in 62 species native to 6 sites from 5 thermally contrasting biomes across Australia. Tcrit and leaf fatty acid (FA) composition (important for membrane stability) were quantified in three temperature‐controlled glasshouses in 20 of those species. Tcrit was greatest at hot field sites and acclimated seasonally (summer > winter, increasing on average 0.34 °C per °C increase in growth temperature). The glasshouse study showed that Tcrit was inherently higher in species from warmer habitats (increasing 0.16 °C per °C increase in origin annual mean maximum temperature) and acclimated to increasing growth temperature (0.24 °C °C−1). Variations in Tcrit were positively correlated with the relative abundance of saturated FAs, with FAs accounting for 40% of Tcrit variation. These results highlight the importance of both plastic adjustments and inherent differences determining contemporary continent‐wide patterns in PHT. Climate records have revealed increasing frequency, intensity, and duration of heatwave events across Australian continent. Such events have important implications for one of the most important metabolic processes in plants—photosynthesis. Our study combined field and glasshouse temperature‐response curves of photosystem II (PSII) functionality to reveal the extent to which photosynthetic heat tolerance: (a) acclimates to sustained changes in growth temperature; and, (b) differs inherently among species adapted to thermally contrasting environments across the Australian continent.