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Related Concept Videos

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C4 Pathway and CAM

Most plants use the C3 pathway for carbon fixation. However, some plants, such as sugar cane, corn, and cacti that grow in hot conditions, use alternative pathways to fix carbon and conserve energy loss due to photorespiration. Photorespiration is the process that occurs when the oxygen concentration is high. Under such conditions, the rubisco enzyme in the Calvin cycle binds O2 instead of CO2, which halts photosynthesis and consumes energy.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 7, 2026

Assessing Structural Traits in Triticum aestivum and Zea mays for C3 and C4 Photosynthetic Differentiation Using Free-hand and Semi-thin Sections
06:04

Assessing Structural Traits in Triticum aestivum and Zea mays for C3 and C4 Photosynthetic Differentiation Using Free-hand and Semi-thin Sections

Published on: July 12, 2024

Phenotypic landscape inference reveals multiple evolutionary paths to C4 photosynthesis.

Ben P Williams1, Iain G Johnston, Sarah Covshoff

  • 1Department of Plant Sciences , University of Cambridge , Cambridge , United Kingdom.

Elife
|October 2, 2013
PubMed
Summary

The evolution of C4 photosynthesis, a complex plant trait, shows flexible and diverse paths. Non-photosynthetic factors, not just photosynthesis, drive the order of trait acquisition, aiding convergent evolution.

Keywords:
Bayesian modelC4 photosynthesisOtherconvergent evolution

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Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Plant Science
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • C4 photosynthesis has evolved independently from the ancestral C3 pathway in numerous plant lineages.
  • The evolutionary pathways leading to complex traits like C4 photosynthesis remain largely unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the diverse evolutionary paths underlying the polyphyletic appearance of C4 photosynthesis.
  • To determine the factors driving the order of C4 trait acquisition.

Main Methods:

  • Conducted a meta-analysis of 18 plant lineages with C3, C4, or intermediate C3-C4 photosynthesis.
  • Parameterized a 16-dimensional phenotypic landscape.
  • Developed and experimentally verified a novel Bayesian approach using a hidden Markov model to predict C4 phenotype evolution.

Main Results:

  • Identified four major trajectories for C4 photosynthesis evolution.
  • Demonstrated that evolutionary histories are influenced by ancestral lineage and initial non-photosynthetic phenotypic alterations.
  • Showed that the order of C4 trait acquisition is flexible.

Conclusions:

  • The convergent evolution of C4 photosynthesis is facilitated by flexible evolutionary paths.
  • Non-photosynthetic drivers play a significant role in shaping the evolution of C4 photosynthesis.