Biology subjects

Lawrence, E. H.

Publications and source records attributed to Lawrence, E. H..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2021

Vegetative Phase Change Causes Age-Dependent Changes in Phenotypic Plasticity

O_LIPhenotypic plasticity allows organisms to optimize traits for their environment. As organisms age, they experience diverse environments that benefit from varying degrees of phenotypic plasticity. Developmental transitions can control these age-dependent changes in plasticity and as such, the timing of these transitions can determine when plasticity changes in an organism. C_LIO_LIHere we investigate how the transition from juvenile-to adult-vegetative development known as vegetative phase change (VPC) contributes to age-dependent changes in phenotypic plasticity and how the timing of this transition responds to environment using both natural accessions and mutant lines in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. C_LIO_LIWe found that the adult phase of vegetative development has greater plasticity in leaf morphology than the juvenile phase and confirmed that this difference in plasticity is caused by VPC using mutant lines. Further, we found that the timing of VPC, and therefore the time when increased plasticity is acquired, varies significantly across genotypes and environments. C_LIO_LIThe consistent age-dependent changes in plasticity caused by VPC suggest that VPC may be adaptive. This genetic and environmental variation in the timing of VPC indicates the potential for population-level adaptive evolution of VPC. C_LI

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2020

miR156-mediated changes in leaf composition lead to altered photosynthetic traits during vegetative phase change

SummaryPlant morphology and physiology change with growth and development. Some of these changes are due to change in plant size and some are the result of genetically programmed developmental transitions. In this study we investigate the role of the developmental transition, vegetative phase change (VPC), on morphological and photosynthetic changes.We used overexpression of miR156, the master regulator of VPC, to modulate the timing of VPC in Populus tremula x alba, Zea mays and Arabidopsis thaliana to determine its role in trait variation independent of changes in size and overall age.Here we find that juvenile and adult leaves in all three species photosynthesize at different rates and that these differences are due to phase-dependent changes in specific leaf area (SLA) and leaf N but not photosynthetic biochemistry. Further, we found juvenile leaves with high SLA were associated with better photosynthetic performance at low light levels.This study establishes a role for VPC in leaf composition and photosynthetic performance across diverse species and environments. Variation in leaf traits due to VPC are likely to provide distinct benefits under specific environments and, as a result, selection on the timing of this transition could be a mechanism for environmental adaptation.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.View Full Text

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2020

Vegetative phase change in Populus tremula x alba

O_LIPlants transition through juvenile and adult phases of vegetative development in a process known as vegetative phase change (VPC). In poplars (genus Populus) the differences between these stages are subtle, making it difficult to determine when this transition occurs. Previous studies of VPC in poplars have relied on plants propagated in vitro, leaving the natural progression of this process unknown. C_LIO_LIWe examined developmental morphology of seed-grown and in vitro derived Populus tremula x alba (clone 717-1B4), and compared the phenotype of these, to transgenics with manipulated miR156 expression, the master regulator of VPC. C_LIO_LIIn seed-grown plants, most traits changed from node-to-node during the first 3 months of development but remained constant after node 25. Many traits remained unchanged in clones over-expressing miR156, or were enhanced when miR156 was lowered, demonstrating their natural progression is regulated by the miR156/SPL pathway. The characteristic leaf fluttering of Populus is one of these miR156-regulated traits. C_LIO_LIVegetative development in plants grown from culture mirrored that of seed-grown plants, allowing direct comparison between plants often used in research and those found in nature. These results provide a foundation for further research on the role of VPC in the ecology and evolution of this economically important genus. C_LI

plant biology↗