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Related Experiment Video

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A Microfluidic Platform to Study Bioclogging in Porous Media

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Hydrodynamically mediated macrophyte silica dynamics.

J Schoelynck¹, K Bal, S Puijalon

¹Department of Biology, Ecosystem Management Research Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium. jonas.schoelynck@ua.ac.be

Plant Biology (Stuttgart, Germany)

|April 20, 2012

Summary

Aquatic plants use biogenic silica (BSi) to reinforce tissues under hydrodynamic stress. Increased silica availability and water flow enhance BSi, potentially allowing plants to adapt to changing aquatic environments.

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Area of Science:

Ecology
Plant Biology
Biogeochemistry

Background:

Hydrodynamic conditions are critical abiotic factors influencing aquatic plant distribution and abundance.
Tissue reinforcement (lignin, cellulose) is costly; silica offers a potentially economical alternative for structural support.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the response of submerged aquatic plants to dissolved silicic acid availability and hydrodynamic stress.
To determine the role of biogenic silica (BSi) in plant tissue reinforcement under varying environmental conditions.

Main Methods:

Laboratory experiments with Egeria densa and Limnophila heterophylla exposed to different dissolved silica levels and water flow.
Field study with Nuphar lutea to validate laboratory findings.
Analysis of biogenic silica, cellulose, and lignin concentrations in plant tissues.

Main Results:

Biogenic silica (BSi) concentration increased with both dissolved silica availability and hydrodynamic stress in stems and leaves.
BSi was negatively correlated with cellulose and positively correlated with lignin concentrations in field samples.
No significant effect of hydrodynamic stress on cellulose or lignin concentrations was observed in laboratory or field studies.

Conclusions:

Silica incorporation may allow aquatic plants to economize on costly structural compounds like lignin and cellulose.
BSi acts as an adaptive mechanism for submerged plants to cope with hydrodynamic stress and varying ecological conditions.
This silica-mediated adaptation could facilitate the colonization of new aquatic environments by submerged species.