Anatomical adaptations of the xerophilous medicinal plant, Capparis spinosa, to drought conditions

Gan, Liu; Zhang, Chunyu; Yin, Yuping; Wang, Qisheng; Yong-Wei, Huang; Xiang, Jing; Fu, Chunhua; Li, Maoteng

doi:10.1007/s13580-013-0162-3

Cited by 35 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…Very high temperatures and long periods without rain, which are likely to occur in this area, will limit the cultivation of more sensitive cultures, vegetables, and some Mediterranean fruit species, and the cultivation of caper could compensate for this gap by contributing to the diversification of agricultural production. Namely, caper has an exceptional ability to find and extract water from dry and rocky soils, thanks to an extensive root system and a very high root/stem ratio [8], while vegetative canopies cover soil surfaces, which helps to conserve soil water reserves. The caper's root system is associated with a nitrogen-fixing bacteria that allows for growth in soils with poor fertility [9], as well as in salty soils.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Efficient Protocol for the In Vitro Plantlet Production of Caper (Capparis orientalis Veill.) from the East Adriatic Coast

et al. 2019

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Caper (Capparis orientalis Veill.) is a species rich in bioactive compounds, with positive effects on human health. It has a great adaptability to harsh environments and an exceptional ability to extract water from dry soils. In Croatia, the caper grows as a wild plant, and its cultivation is insignificant, which is probably due to propagation difficulties. Micropropagation could be a solution for this. The aim of this study was to investigate the success of the micropropagation, in vitro rooting, and acclimatization of Capparis orientalis Veill. Shoot proliferation was tested in a Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium, with sucrose or glucose, and in 13 treatments, presenting the combined effect of different cytokinins and their concentrations. The success of rooting was examined in relation to the impact of various auxins, durations of rooting, and carry-over effects. A better proliferation was achieved when sucrose was used. The highest number (18) of shoots/explants was obtained in the medium supplemented with 0.6 mg·L−1 meta-topolin, while the rooting was equally efficient in the media supplemented with 2 mg·L−1 of indole-3-acetic acid or indole-3-butyric acid, or in hormone-free rooting medium. A prolonged time in the media increased the rooting efficiency, while the carry-over effect had no influence. The acclimatization rate reached 66%. Additional efforts should be made to find out how to speed upthe rooting and enhance the acclimatization rate of caper grown in Croatia.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Efficient Protocol for the In Vitro Plantlet Production of Caper (Capparis orientalis Veill.) from the East Adriatic Coast

et al. 2019

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“…As thick-walled sclerenchymatous tissues (Evert, 2006), idioblasts evolved multiple shapes and dispositions within leaves, but the columnar type of idioblasts displayed in the leaves of C. odortatissima have only been described in a couple of species so far: Hakea suaveolens (Heide-Jorgensen, 1990), and Mouriria huberi (Foster, 1947). These adaptations cannot be related to xeric environments, since other species from the same genus and adapted to dry climates have completely different anatomies, such as the Mediterranean Capparis spinosa (Rhizopoulou, 1990; Rhizopoulou and Psaras, 2003; Gan et al, 2013).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Some noteworthy exceptions suggest that idioblasts could affect the physiology of the leaves more than previously thought, such as serving as light guides (Karabourniotis, 1998). The diverse array of anatomies of xerophyllous species is exemplified in the genus Capparis (Rao and Mody, 1961; Gan et al, 2013). Capparis odoratissima is a species native to the semiarid tropical environments of the South American continent with a remarkable capacity to produce new biomass using canopy irrigation as the only water source (Díaz and Granadillo, 2005), likely through foliar water uptake.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Idioblasts as pathways for distributing water absorbed by leaf surfaces to the mesophyll inCapparis odoratissima

Losada

Dı́az

Holbrook

2019

Preprint

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Capparis odoratissima is a tree species native to semi-arid environments of the northern coast of South America where low soil water availability coexists with frequent nighttime fog. Previous work with this species demonstrated that C. odoratissima is able to use water absorbed through its leaves at night to enhance leaf hydration, photosynthesis, and growth.Here, we combine detailed anatomical evaluations of the leaves of C. odoratissima, with water and dye uptake experiments in the laboratory. We used immunolocalization of pectin and arabinogalactan protein epitopes to characterize the chemistry of foliar water uptake pathways.The abaxial surfaces of C. odoratissima leaves are covered with overlapping, multicellular peltate hairs, while the adaxial surfaces are glabrous but with star-shaped “structures” at regular intervals. Despite these differences in anatomy, both surfaces are able to absorb condensed water, but this ability is most significant on the upper surface. Rates of evaporative water loss from the upper surface, however, are coincident with cuticle conductance. Numerous idioblasts connect the adaxial leaf surface and the adaxial peltate hairs, which contain hygroscopic substances such as arabinogalactan proteins and pectins.The highly specialized anatomy of the leaves of C odoratissima fulfills the dual function of avoiding excessive water loss due to evaporation, while maintaining the ability to absorb liquid water. Cell-wall related hygroscopic compounds present in the peltate hairs and idioblasts create a network of microchannels that maintain leaf hydration and promote the uptake of aerial water.

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“…Such shrubs protect the soil from sunlight, limiting high soil temperatures and thus regulating the microclimate. By comparison with other desert plants, caper has a high water use efficiency (WUE) and a remarkable ability to search and absorb water from its environment (particularly in soil depths) thanks to an extensive root system and a very high root/stem ratio (Zuo et al, 2012 ; Gan et al, 2013 ). This root system is very effective for water retention during scattered rainfall events, providing suitable conditions for soil fauna and microbiota development.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…C. spinosa L. has an aesthetic blossom and a sweet-scented flower, thus it is used as an ornamental plant for gardens and walls as well for terraces exposed to sun. It requires no watering and can be grown in poor soils or even stones (Gan et al, 2013 ). At the agronomic level, this species has led to great financial returns from its cultivation due to its resistance to environmental stresses and its enormous ethnobotanical and pharmaceutical importance, as well as its content in bioactive agents having high nutritional value and great efficacy in the manufacture of medicines and cosmetics.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Capparis spinosa L. in A Systematic Review: A Xerophilous Species of Multi Values and Promising Potentialities for Agrosystems under the Threat of Global Warming

et al. 2017

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Caper (Capparis spinosa L.) is a xerophytic shrub with a remarkable adaptability to harsh environments. This plant species is of great interest for its medicinal/pharmacological properties and its culinary uses. Its phytochemical importance relies on many bioactive components present in different organs and its cultivation can be of considerable economic value. Moreover, taxonomic identification of C. spinosa L. has been difficult due to its wide heterogeneity, and many authors fell into confusion due to the scarcity of genetic studies. The present review summarizes information concerning C. spinosa L. including agronomic performance, botanical description, taxonomical approaches, traditional pharmacological uses, phytochemical evaluation and genetic studies. This knowledge represents an important tool for further research studies and agronomic development on this indigenous species with respect to the emerging climatic change in the Eastern Mediterranean countries. Indeed, this world region is particularly under the threat of global warming and it appears necessary to rethink agricultural systems to adapt them to current and futures challenging environmental conditions. Capparis spinosa L. could be a part of this approach. So, this review presents a state of the art considering caper as a potential interesting crop under arid or semi-arid regions (such as Eastern Mediterranean countries) within the climate change context. The aim is to raise awareness in the scientific community (geneticists, physiologists, ecophysiologists, agronomists, …) about the caper strengths and interest to the development of this shrub as a crop.

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Anatomical adaptations of the xerophilous medicinal plant, Capparis spinosa, to drought conditions

Cited by 35 publications

References 16 publications

Efficient Protocol for the In Vitro Plantlet Production of Caper (Capparis orientalis Veill.) from the East Adriatic Coast

Efficient Protocol for the In Vitro Plantlet Production of Caper (Capparis orientalis Veill.) from the East Adriatic Coast

Idioblasts as pathways for distributing water absorbed by leaf surfaces to the mesophyll inCapparis odoratissima

Capparis spinosa L. in A Systematic Review: A Xerophilous Species of Multi Values and Promising Potentialities for Agrosystems under the Threat of Global Warming

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