Phloem transport and drought

Abstract

Drought challenges plant water uptake and the vascular system. In the xylem it causes embolism that impairs water transport from the soil to the leaves and, if uncontrolled, may even lead to plant mortality via hydraulic failure. What happens in the phloem, however, is less clear because measuring phloem transport is still a significant challenge to plant science. In all vascular plants, phloem and xylem tissues are located next to each other, and there is clear evidence that these tissues exchange water. Therefore, drought should also lead to water shortage in the phloem. In this review, theories used in phloem transport models have been applied to drought conditions, with the goal of shedding light on how phloem transport failure might occur. The review revealed that phloem failure could occur either because of viscosity build-up at the source sites or by a failure to maintain phloem water status and cell turgor. Which one of these dominates depends on the hydraulic permeability of phloem conduit walls. Impermeable walls will lead to viscosity build-up affecting flow rates, while permeable walls make the plant more susceptible to phloem turgor failure. Current empirical evidence suggests that phloem failure resulting from phloem turgor collapse is the more likely mechanism at least in relatively isohydric plants.