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Relating Stomatal Conductance to Leaf Functional Traits
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Mesophyll conductance to CO2: current knowledge and future prospects.

Jaume Flexas1, Miquel Ribas-Carbó, Antonio Diaz-Espejo

  • 1Grup de Recerca en Biologia de les Plantes en Condicions Mediterrànies, Departament de Biologia, Universitat de les Illes Balears, Carretera de Valldemossa Km 7.5, 07122 Palma de Mallorca, Balears, Spain. jaume.flexas@uib.es

Plant, Cell & Environment
|November 13, 2007
PubMed
Summary

Mesophyll conductance (g(m)) limits photosynthesis by reducing CO2 concentration within leaves. This review revises current knowledge on g(m), its regulation, and implications for plant science.

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Area of Science:

  • Plant Physiology
  • Photosynthesis Research
  • Biophysical Chemistry

Background:

  • CO2 diffusion within leaves is crucial for photosynthesis, involving atmospheric, stomatal, and mesophyll pathways.
  • Mesophyll conductance (g(m)) represents CO2 diffusion from sub-stomatal cavities to chloroplasts, significantly impacting photosynthetic rates.
  • Evidence suggests g(m) is often a limiting factor, influenced by internal leaf structure and environmental conditions.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To provide a comprehensive revision of current knowledge on mesophyll conductance (g(m)).
  • To re-examine the variation, regulation, and physiological bases of g(m).
  • To highlight the ecological implications and modeling errors associated with neglecting g(m).

Main Methods:

  • Literature review and synthesis of existing research on mesophyll conductance.
  • Historical perspective on the study of g(m) and its measurement techniques.
  • Analysis of factors influencing g(m), including environmental variables and plant traits.

Main Results:

  • Mesophyll conductance (g(m)) is a significant determinant of photosynthesis, often limiting CO2 availability to chloroplasts.
  • g(m) exhibits considerable variation across species and is highly dynamic, responding rapidly to environmental changes.
  • Liquid phase conductance (g(liq)) and cell wall conductance (g(w)) are identified as key components influencing overall g(m).

Conclusions:

  • Understanding g(m) is critical for accurate photosynthesis modeling and predicting plant responses to environmental change.
  • Aquaporins and carbonic anhydrases are potential physiological mechanisms underlying g(m).
  • Future research should focus on refining g(m) measurements, exploring its ecological roles, and improving carbon isotope discrimination models.