Journal
PLANT CELL AND ENVIRONMENT
Volume 34, Issue 10, Pages 1630-1638Publisher
WILEY
DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-3040.2011.02358.x
Keywords
Arabidopsis root; hydraulic conductivity; matric potential; nitrate; sand; water potential
Categories
Funding
- Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) of the UK
- BBSRC
- Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council [BBS/E/J/000C0651, BB/E006531/1, BBS/E/C/00004983, BBS/E/C/00004166, BBS/E/C/00004967] Funding Source: researchfish
- BBSRC [BBS/E/C/00004983, BB/E006531/1, BBS/E/C/00004967, BBS/E/J/000C0651] Funding Source: UKRI
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Understanding how root system architecture (RSA) adapts to changing nitrogen and water availability is important for improving acquisition. A sand rhizotron system was developed to study RSA in a porous substrate under tightly regulated nutrient supply. The RSA of Arabidopsis seedlings under differing nitrate (NO3-) and water supplies in agar and sand was described. The hydraulic conductivity of the root environment was manipulated by using altered sand particle size and matric potentials. Ion-selective microelectrodes were used to quantify NO3- at the surface of growing primary roots in sands of different particle sizes. Differences in RSA were observed between seedlings grown on agar and sand, and the influence of NO3- (0.1-10.0 mM) and water on RSA was determined. Primary root length (PRL) was a function of water flux and independent of NO3-. The percentage of roots with laterals correlated with water flux, whereas NO3- supply was important for basal root (BR) growth. In agar and sand, the NO3- activities at the root surface were higher than those supplied in the nutrient solution. The sand rhizotron system is a useful tool for the study of RSA, providing a porous growth environment that can be used to simulate the effects of hydraulic conductivity on growth.
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