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Photosynthetic responses of Monarch birch seedlings to differing timings of free air ozone fumigation

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Abstract

To study the effects of different periods of ozone (O3) fumigation on photosynthesis in leaves of the Monarch birch (Betula maximowicziana), we undertook free air O3 fumigation to Monarch birch seedlings at a concentration of 60 nmol mol−1 during daytime. Plants were exposed to O3 at early, late or both periods in the growing season. The light-saturated net photosynthetic rate (A sat) in July and August was reduced by O3 exposure through a reduction in the maximum rate of carboxylation (V c,max). In early September, on the other hand, despite a reduction in V c,max, A sat was not reduced by O3 due to a counteracting increase in the stomatal conductance. Through the experiment, there was no difference in sensitivity to O3 between maturing and matured leaves. We analyzed the relationship between A sat, V c,max and accumulated stomatal O3 flux (AFst). Whereas V c,max decreased with increasing AFst, the correlation between A sat and AFst was weak because the response of stomatal conductance to O3 was affected by season. We conclude photosynthetic response of Monarch birch to O3 exposure changes with season. This is due to the inconstant stomatal response to O3 but not due to the respose of biochemical assimilation capacity in chloroplasts.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported partly by the Environment Research and Technology Development Fund (5B-1105) of the Ministry of the Environment of Japan (grant to T. Koike), and by a Grant–in–Aid from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science through its Type B program (to T. Koike, grant 23380078) and Young Scientists B (to M. Watanabe, grant 24710027 and to Y. Hoshika, grant 24780239). Thanks are also due to Dr. Anthony Garret of SCITEXT-Cambridge for English proofread.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Silviculture and Forest Ecological Studies, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, 060-8589, Japan

    Makoto Watanabe, Yasutomo Hoshika & Takayoshi Koike

  2. Institute of Agriculture, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Fuchu, Tokyo, 183-8509, Japan

    Makoto Watanabe

  3. Institute of Plant Protection, National Research Council of Italy, Via Madonna del Piano, 50019, Sesto Fiorentino, Italy

    Yasutomo Hoshika

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  1. Makoto Watanabe
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  2. Yasutomo Hoshika
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Correspondence to Takayoshi Koike.

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Watanabe, M., Hoshika, Y. & Koike, T. Photosynthetic responses of Monarch birch seedlings to differing timings of free air ozone fumigation. J Plant Res 127, 339–345 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10265-013-0622-y

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