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Leaf nitrate accumulation influences the photorespiration of rice (Oryza sativa L.) seedlings

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Abstract

Aims

The form of nitrogen (N) supply influences photorespiration in C3 plants, but whether nitrate (NO3−) regulates photorespiration and, if so, the underlying mechanisms for such regulation are still unclear.

Methods

Three hydroponic experiments were conducted in a greenhouse to investigate the relationships between leaf NO3− concentrations and photorespiration rates in rice (Oryza sativa L.) genotypes cv. ‘Shanyou 63’ hybrid indica and ‘Zhendao 11’ hybrid japonica or using mutants that overexpress NRT2.1 (in cv. ‘Nipponbare’ inbred japonica). We estimated photorespiratory rate from the CO2 compensation point in the absence of daytime respiration (Γ*) using the biochemical model of photosynthesis.

Results

Higher Γ* values under high N level or NO3− were significantly and positively correlated with leaf NO3− concentrations. Further elevating leaf NO3− concentrations by either resuming NO3− nutrition supply after N depletion (in cv. ‘Shanyou 63’ hybrid indica and ‘Zhendao 11’ hybrid japonica) or using mutants that overexpress NRT2.1 (in cv. ‘Nipponbare’ inbred japonica) increased Γ* values. Additionally, the activities of leaf nitrate reductase (Nr) and concentrations of organic acids involving in the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle synchronously changed as environmental conditions were varied.

Conclusions

Photorespiration rate is related to the leaf NO3− concentration, and the correlation may links to the photorespiration-TCA derived reductants required for NO3− assimilation.

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Abbreviations

A :

net photosynthetic rate

Ci :

intercellular CO2 concentration

Ci*:

apparent CO2 compensation point in the absence of respiration

g m :

mesophyll conductance

gs :

stomatal conductance

J T :

total electron transport rate

N:

nitrogen

NH4+ :

ammonium

NO3− :

nitrate

Nr:

nitrate reductase

PPFD:

photosynthetic photon flux density

R d :

day respiration rate

TCA:

tricarboxylic acid

Γ*:

CO2 compensation point in the absence of daytime respiration

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Acknowledgements

We thank professor Luis A. J. Mur (IBRES, Aberystwyth University, UK) for critical reading and revising of the English in this manuscript. This work was financially supported by the National Key R & D Program (2016YFD0200305, 2016YFD0200900) and the Young Elite Scientists Sponsorship Program by CAST (2018QNRC001).

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Author notes

  1. Shiwei Guo

    Present address: , No. 6 Tongweid Road, Nanjing province, 210095, China

  2. Yuming Sun and Yingrui Li contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Jiangsu Provincial Key Lab for Organic Solid Waste Utilization, National Engineering Research Centre for Organic-based Fertilizers, Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Centre for Solid Organic Waste Resource Utilization, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, 210095, China

    Yuming Sun, Yingrui Li, Bo Wang, Lei Ding, Min Wang, Xiaorong Fan, Qirong Shen & Shiwei Guo

  2. Jiangsu Key Laboratory for the Research and Utilization of Plant Resources, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, 210014, China

    Yuming Sun

  3. Ministry of Agriculture Key Laboratory of Crop Ecophysiology and Farming System in the Middle Reaches of the Yangtze River, College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei, China

    Yong Li

  4. Institut des Sciences de la Vie, Université Catholique de Louvain, B-1348, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium

    Lei Ding

  5. Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences, Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth, SY23 3DA, UK

    Luis Alejandro Jose Mur

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  1. Yuming Sun
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Contributions

S.W.G. and Y.R.L. conceived and designed the experiment; Y.R.L., B.W. and M.W. performed the experiments; Y.R.L., Y.M.S. and L.D. analyzed the data and contributed table and figures; Y.M.S. and S.W.G. wrote the paper; X.R.F. provided the transgenic lines of rice seedlings; Y.L., L.A.J.M. and Q.R.S. proofread and polished the manuscript; all authors reviewed the manuscript and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Shiwei Guo.

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Sun, Y., Li, Y., Wang, B. et al. Leaf nitrate accumulation influences the photorespiration of rice (Oryza sativa L.) seedlings. Plant Soil 456, 323–338 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-020-04710-1

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