Abstract
Photosynthetic carbon converted to sucrose is vital for plant growth. Sucrose acts as a signaling molecule and a primary energy source that coordinates the source and sink development. Alteration in source–sink balance halts the physiological and developmental processes of plants, since plant growth is mostly triggered when the primary assimilates in the source leaf balance with the metabolic needs of the heterotrophic sinks. To measure up with the sink organ’s metabolic needs, the improvement of photosynthetic carbon to synthesis sucrose, its remobilization, and utilization at the sink level becomes imperative. However, environmental cues that influence sucrose balance within these plant organs, limiting positive yield prospects, have also been a rising issue over the past few decades. Thus, this review discusses strategies to improve photosynthetic carbon assimilation, the pathways actively involved in the transport of sucrose from source to sink organs, and their utilization at the sink organ. We further emphasize the impact of various environmental cues on sucrose transport and utilization, and the strategic yield improvement approaches under such conditions.
Highlights
Plant growth and development are adversely affected when photo-assimilates are not appropriately apportioned
The Arabidopsis double mutant, atsweet11 or 12, exhibits impaired ability to expunge sucrose out of the leaves. This inhibition resulting from starch accumulation leads to downregulation of photosynthesis, demonstrating that sucrose export by the Sugars Will Eventually be Exported Transporters (SWEETs) family plays an imperative role in photosynthetic improvement
The strategies involved in improving photosynthetic carbon assimilation for sucrose synthesis and sucrose transport to and its utilization at the sink level become imperative
Summary
Plant growth and development are adversely affected when photo-assimilates are not appropriately apportioned. The translocation of photo-assimilate to the sink and its utilization at the sink level is mainly altered by environmental factors. Little attention has been directed toward the influence of these environmental factors on photo-assimilate transport and utilization at the sink level. A conceptual understanding of the source–sink interaction is paramount for optimizing plant growth under fluctuating environmental conditions. A conceptual understanding of the source–sink interac of 29 tion is paramount for optimizing plant growth under fluctuating environmental conditions. To fully understand the interaction between the partitioning of photo-assimilates, plant growth, and environment (Figure 1), the following sections focus on: (1) strategies growth, andthe environment Given the efficient utilization sucrose, other environmental factors can disrupt distribution sink level become imperative.
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