Abstract
A common garden experiment was established to investigate the effects of serpentine soil on the photosynthetic and biochemical traits of plants from three Greek populations of Aegilops triuncialis. We measured photosynthetic and chlorophyll fluorescence parameters, proline content, and nutrient uptake of the above plants growing in serpentine and non-serpentine soil. The photochemical activity of PSII was inhibited in plants growing in the serpentine soil regardless of the population; however, this inhibition was lower in the Aetolia-Acarnania population. The uptake and the allocation of Ni, as well as that of some other essential nutrient elements (Ca, Mg, Fe, Mn), to upper parts were decreased with the lower decrease recorded in the Aetolia-Acarnania population. Our results showed that excess Ni significantly increased the synthesis of proline, an antioxidant compound that plays an important role in the protection against oxidative stress. We conclude that the reduction in the photosynthetic performance is most probably due to reduced nutrient supply to the upper plant parts. Moreover, nickel accumulation in the roots recorded in plants from all three populations seems to be a mechanism to alleviate the detrimental effects of the serpentine soil stress. In addition, our data suggest that the population from Aetolia-Acarnania could be categorized among the nickel excluders.
Highlights
Our results demonstrate that the Ae. triuncialis plants from the Aetolia-Acarnania population had a lower inhibition of the donor (Fv/Fo) of PSII reaction centers (RCs), maximum photochemical efficiency, and higher performance index compared to Preveza and Lefkada populations
Following a common garden experimental approach, we demonstrated that three Greek barbed goatgrass populations presented different performance under serpentine and non-serpentine soils, and our hypothesis is rejected
Aetolia-Acarnania presented a remarkable response to serpentine soil/heavy metal stress maintaining photosynthetic performance and nutrition uptake and can be characterized as a serpentine tolerant population
Summary
CWRs have become adapted to various abiotic and biotic stresses to thrive and persist, but today are under risk of extinction in their natural habitat (Directive 92/43 EEC) due to urbanization, scarcity of water, deforestation, desertification, intensive farming, overgrazing, erosion of soil and plant genetic resources, pollution (land, water), and global climate change [2,3,5,6,7]. These species deserve special attention and their habitats need to be protected [8,9]. Climate change can either directly or indirectly influence CWR loss by affecting and endangering crop productivity and promoting the dispersion, establishment, and growth of invasive weeds that outcompete and drive to extinction the native flora [12]
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