The circadian clock contributes to the long-term water use efficiency of Arabidopsis

In plants, water use efficiency is a complex trait derived from numerous physiological and developmental characteristics. Here, we investigated the involvement of circadian regulation in long-term water use efficiency. Circadian rhythms are generated by the circadian oscillator, which provides a cel...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inbioRxiv
Main Authors Simon, Noriane Ml, Graham, Calum A, Comben, Nicholas E, Hetherington, Alistair M, Dodd, Antony N
Format Paper
LanguageEnglish
Published Cold Spring Harbor Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press 10.02.2020
Subjects
Arabidopsis
Carbohydrate metabolism
Circadian rhythm
Circadian rhythms
Dehydration
Efficiency
Guard cells
Photosynthesis
Stomata
Transpiration
Water use
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Summary:In plants, water use efficiency is a complex trait derived from numerous physiological and developmental characteristics. Here, we investigated the involvement of circadian regulation in long-term water use efficiency. Circadian rhythms are generated by the circadian oscillator, which provides a cellular measure of the time of day. In plants, the circadian oscillator contributes to the regulation of many aspects of physiology, including stomatal opening, the rate of photosynthesis, carbohydrate metabolism and developmental processes. We investigated in Arabidopsis the impact of the misregulation of genes encoding a large number of components of the circadian oscillator upon whole plant, long-term water use efficiency. From this, we identified a role for the circadian oscillator in water use efficiency. This appears to be due to contributions of the circadian clock to the control of transpiration and biomass accumulation. We also identified that the circadian oscillator within guard cells can contribute to long-term water use efficiency. Our experiments indicate that knowledge of circadian regulation will be important for developing future crops that use water more efficiently. Footnotes * Revised statistical analysis with some resulting data reinterpretation. Restructuring of some figures to accommodate this reanalysis.
DOI:10.1101/583526