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Unravelling the roles of desiccation-induced xanthophyll cycle activity in darkness: a case study in Lobaria pulmonaria

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Abstract

Desiccation-tolerance ability in photosynthetic organisms is largely based on a battery of photoprotective mechanisms. Xanthophyll cycle operation induced by desiccation in the absence of light has been previously proven in the desiccation-tolerant fern Ceterach officinarum. To understand the physiological function of xanthophyll cycle induction in darkness and its implication in the desiccation tolerance in more detail, we studied its triggering factors and its photochemical effects in the lichen Lobaria pulmonaria. We found that both the drying rate and the degree of desiccation play a crucial role in the violaxanthin de-epoxidase activation. De-epoxidation of violaxanthin to zeaxanthin (Z) occurs when the tissue has lost most of its water and only after slow dehydration, suggesting that a minimum period of time is required for the enzyme activity induction. Fluorescence analysis showed that Z, synthesised during tissue dehydration in the absence of light, prevents photoinhibition when rewatered tissues are illuminated. This is probably due to Z implication in both non-photochemical quenching and/or antioxidative responses.

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Abbreviations

A:

Antheraxanthin

Chl:

Chlorophyll

Dh:

Dehydrated

DTT:

Dithiothreitol

F 0 :

Minimum chlorophyll fluorescence yield

F m :

Maximum chlorophyll fluorescence yield

F v :

Variable chlorophyll fluorescence

Fv/Fm:

Maximum quantum yield of the PS II

H:

Hydrated

NPQ:

Non-photochemical quenching

PFD:

Photon flux density

R:

Rehydrated

RH:

Relative humidity

ROS:

Reactive oxygen species

RWC:

Relative water content

VAZ:

Violaxanthin–antheraxanthin–zeaxanthin

VDE:

Violaxanthin de-epoxidase

V:

Violaxanthin

Z:

Zeaxanthin

ZE:

Zeaxanthin epoxidase

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Acknowledgments

We are very grateful to Jane Edwards for linguistic consultation of the manuscript. B.F.M. received a fellowship from the Basque Government. This research was supported by research BFU 2007-62637 from the Ministry of Education and Science of Spain and research project UPV/EHU-GV IT-299-07.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Biología Vegetal y Ecología, Universidad del País Vasco, Aptdo. 644, 48080, Bilbao, Spain

    B. Fernández-Marín, J. M. Becerril & J. I. García-Plazaola

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  1. B. Fernández-Marín
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  2. J. M. Becerril
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  3. J. I. García-Plazaola
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Correspondence to B. Fernández-Marín.

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Fernández-Marín, B., Becerril, J.M. & García-Plazaola, J.I. Unravelling the roles of desiccation-induced xanthophyll cycle activity in darkness: a case study in Lobaria pulmonaria . Planta 231, 1335–1342 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-010-1129-6

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