Understanding the Relationship between Water Availability and Biosilica Accumulation in Selected C4 Crop Leaves: An Experimental Approach

D’Agostini, F and Vadez, V and Kholova, J and Ruiz-Pérez, J and Madella, M and Lancelotti, C (2022) Understanding the Relationship between Water Availability and Biosilica Accumulation in Selected C4 Crop Leaves: An Experimental Approach. Plants (TSI), 11 (8). pp. 1-18. ISSN 2223-7747

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Abstract

Biosilica accumulation in plant tissues is related to the transpiration stream, which in turn depends on water availability. Nevertheless, the debate on whether genetically and environmentally controlled mechanisms of biosilica deposition are directly connected to water availability is still open. We aim at clarifying the system which leads to the deposition of biosilica in Sorghum bicolor, Pennisetum glaucum, and Eleusine coracana, expanding our understanding of the physiological role of silicon in crops well-adapted to arid environments, and simultaneously advancing the research in archaeological and paleoenvironmental studies. We cultivated ten traditional landraces for each crop in lysimeters, simulating irrigated and rain-fed scenarios in arid contexts. The percentage of biosilica accumulated in leaves indicates that both well-watered millet species deposited more biosilica than the water-stressed ones. By contrast, sorghum accumulated more biosilica with respect to the other two species, and biosilica accumulation was independent of the water regime. The water treatment alone did not explain either the variability of the assemblage or the differences in the biosilica accumulation. Hence, we hypothesize that genetics influence the variability substantially. These results demonstrate that biosilica accumulation differs among and within

Item Type:	Article
Divisions:	Global Research Program - Accelerated Crop Improvement
CRP:	UNSPECIFIED
Uncontrolled Keywords:	biosilica, phyoliths, water availability, C4 crops
Subjects:	Others > Water Resources
Depositing User:	Mr Nagaraju T
Date Deposited:	14 Mar 2024 05:18
Last Modified:	14 Mar 2024 05:18
URI:	http://oar.icrisat.org/id/eprint/12578
Official URL:	https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/11/8/1019
Projects:	UNSPECIFIED
Funders:	European Research Council
Acknowledgement:	We would like to thank all the GEMS team (ICRISAT) who helped during the fieldwork, particularly Rekha Baddam and Suresh Naidu, as well as Krithika Anbazhagan and Sunita Choudhary, whose suggestions have been invaluable and benefited the success of the study. Thanks are due to Guillermo Marin Garcia for his help in processing the samples in the laboratory and to Alessandra Varalli for her support and guidance. Universitat Pompeu Fabra health and safety measurements have been followed during both the fieldwork and the laboratory work. At the time of working on this project, F.D., J.R.P., M.M. and C.L. were members of the Culture and Socio-Ecological Dynamics (CaSEs-UPF), a recognised Research Group of the Catalan Agency for Research (AGAUR SGR-212).
Links:	Google Scholar

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