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Silicophytoliths from soybean plants in different growth stages of the Argentine Pampas

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Abstract

For decades, silicophytolith and silicon (Si) studies have been conducted on plant families which produce high amounts of this compound, such as horsetails, grasses, sedges, and palms. However, in recent years, studies on low silicophytolith-producing families became relevant because of the important role this compound plays in their growth. In cultivated soils from South America, research on silicophytolith production in crops and on the availability of silicon sinks is scarce. The present study is the first report of silicophytolith production in soybean plants, using staining and calcination techniques. The silicophytolith morphologies found in leaves were tabular lobate, hair bases, long and short hairs, stomatal complexes, cylindrical sulcate tracheid, elongate with fusiform edges, articulated, and orbicular cells with thickened edges silicified; in stems, branches, pods, and flowers, the silicophytoliths were orbicular and cylindrical sulcate tracheid. Throughout their growth, these soybean crops produced 1.04, 25.12, and 40.08 kg ha-1 of silicophytoliths in vegetative (S12), reproductive (S61), and maturity stages (S89), respectively. These results will contribute to the knowledge of the amount of silica/silicophytoliths involved in the process of Si-recycling through cultivated vegetation in fields from humid plains in medium latitude.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank Ing. MSc. José Felix Vilá, director of Microscopy Laboratory of National University of Mar del Plata, for technical assistance on the scanning electron microscope and the Gonzalez family for providing the soybean field to perform this study. We also thank the comments and suggestions of Mariana Fernández Honaine and Macarena S. Valiñas that helped to improve our manuscript. This work was supported by Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica (PICT-2036 and PICT-1583) and Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (EXA 741/15).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Geología de Costas y del Cuaternario (IGCyC), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata, CC 722, Correo Central, 7600, Mar del Plata, Argentina

    M. L. Benvenuto & M. L. Osterrieth

  2. Fondo para la Investigación Científica y Tecnológica (FONCyT), Mar del Plata, Argentina

    M. L. Benvenuto

  3. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras (IIMyC)-Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Mar del Plata, Argentina

    M. L. Osterrieth

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  1. M. L. Benvenuto
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Correspondence to M. L. Benvenuto.

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Benvenuto, M.L., Osterrieth, M.L. Silicophytoliths from soybean plants in different growth stages of the Argentine Pampas. Braz. J. Bot 39, 337–347 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40415-015-0212-4

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