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Variations of cuticular wax in mulberry trees and their effects on gas exchange and post-harvest water loss

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Abstract

Though mulberry (Morus alba) tree shows great adaptations to various climate conditions, their leaf water status and photosynthesis are sensitive to climate changes. In the current study, seven widely planted mulberry cultivars in Chongqing, Southwest China, were selected to analyze leaf cuticular wax characteristics, gas exchange index, post-harvest leaf water status and their relationships, aiming to provide new theory in screening high resistant mulberry cultivars. Mulberry trees formed rounded cap-type idioblasts on the adaxial leaf surface. Film-like waxes and granule-type wax crystals covered leaf surfaces, varying in crystal density among cultivars. The stomatal aperture on the abaxial surface of cultivars with high wax amount was smaller than that of cultivars with low wax amount. The amount of total wax was negatively correlated with the net photosynthetic rate (P N), transpiration rate (E) and stomatal conductance (g s) and positively correlated with the moisture retention capacity. It suggested that both cuticular wax and stomatal factor might be involved in regulating water loss in mulberry leaves under field conditions. The variability in moisture retention capacity and cuticular wax characteristics might be important in evaluating and screening mulberry cultivars for increasing silk quality and silkworm productivity.

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Acknowledgments

This work was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31270450). The authors are grateful to Lv Jun and Zheng Jun for their assistance in measuring photosynthesis and cuticular waxes.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400716, China

    Yu Ni, Zhengyuan Sun & Yanjun Guo

  2. Science and Technology Division, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400716, China

    Xianzhi Huang

  3. Science and Technology Institute of Sericulture of Chongqing, Chongqing, 400716, China

    Chuanshu Huang

Authors
  1. Yu Ni
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  2. Zhengyuan Sun
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  3. Xianzhi Huang
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  4. Chuanshu Huang
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  5. Yanjun Guo
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Yanjun Guo.

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Communicated by U. Feller.

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Ni, Y., Sun, Z., Huang, X. et al. Variations of cuticular wax in mulberry trees and their effects on gas exchange and post-harvest water loss. Acta Physiol Plant 37, 112 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11738-015-1856-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11738-015-1856-1

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