Abstract
Over-application of copper (Cu) is prevalent in citrus orchards of South China. Therefore, the evaluation of citrus Cu tolerance is of significance for better nutrient management and in the breeding of Cu-tolerant citrus species. In this study, seedlings of ‘Xuegan’ [Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck] and ‘Shatian pummelo’ [Citrus grandis (L.) Osbeck] were treated with 0.5 µM Cu (Control) or 300 µM Cu (Cu toxicity) for 18 weeks in sandy culture medium. The results demonstrated that excess Cu decreased seedling biomass, plant height, and root length and significantly increased Cu accumulation of C. sinensis and C. grandis. The Cu distribution in citrus tissues was following the order: lateral roots > primary roots > stems > leaves. Compared to C. sinensis, C. grandis had a 22.4% higher Cu concentration in the lateral roots under Cu toxicity. According to the stomata limiting theory, the inhibition of the net photosynthetic rate of C. sinensis leaves by Cu toxicity was mainly attributed to non-stomata limitation. The chlorophyll a transient indicated much more severe damage to the structure and function of leaf photosynthetic system II (PS II) in C. sinensis than C. grandis by Cu toxicity. Conclusively, a higher Cu retention in the lateral roots, the maintenance of a stable PS II structure, and higher electron transferring rate from PS II to PS I implied the relatively higher Cu tolerance of C. grandis seedlings. These results provide essential information for further investigation on the Cu-tolerant mechanisms of citrus species and the future breeding of Cu-tolerant citrus species.
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Data availability
The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Abbreviations
- ABS/CSm :
-
Light energy absorbed per active reaction center of PS II
- C a :
-
Ambient CO2 concentration
- CE:
-
Carboxylation efficiency (CE = PN/Ci)
- Chl:
-
Chlorophyll
- C i :
-
Intercellular CO2 concentration
- E :
-
Transpiration rate
- ETo/CSm :
-
Light energy transported per active reaction center of PS II
- F v/F m :
-
Maximum photochemical efficiency of PS II
- g s :
-
Stomatal conductance
- Ls:
-
Stomata limiting value (Ls = 1 − Ci/Ca)
- OEC:
-
The oxygen evolving compound
- PIabs :
-
Performance index on the absorption basis
- PItotal :
-
The photochemical performance index of PS II reaction center
- P N :
-
Net photosynthetic rate
- PS II:
-
Photosynthetic system II
- TRo/CSm :
-
Light energy trapped per active reaction center of PS II
- WUE:
-
Water-use efficiency (WUE = PN/E)
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (31801950) and the Special Fund for Scientific and Technological Innovation of Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University (CXZX2019079S). The authors thank Professor Richard G Donald (Dalhousie University, Halifax, Canada) for the linguistic assistance during the preparation of this manuscript.
Funding
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31801950) and the Special Fund for Scientific and Technological Innovation of Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University (CXZX2019079S).
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ZH and LC designed the study; XL, ML, and PH performed all the experiments; XL wrote the manuscript; NL contributed valuable suggestions.
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Li, Xy., Lin, Ml., Hu, Pp. et al. Copper Toxicity Differentially Regulates the Seedling Growth, Copper Distribution, and Photosynthetic Performance of Citrus sinensis and Citrus grandis. J Plant Growth Regul 41, 3333–3344 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00344-021-10516-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00344-021-10516-x