Journal
NEW PHYTOLOGIST
Volume 214, Issue 3, Pages 1002-1018Publisher
WILEY
DOI: 10.1111/nph.14079
Keywords
carboxylation capacity; elevation; leaf traits; nitrogen (N); phosphorus (P); ribulose bisphosphate regeneration; temperature; tropical forests
Categories
Funding
- Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
- Australian Research Council [DP0986823, DP130101252, CE140100008, FT0991448, FT110100457]
- NERC grants [NE/C51621X/1, NE/F002149/1]
- Malaysian Government Postgraduate Scholarship
- Newton International Fellowship (Royal Society)
- Newton International Fellowship (British Academy)
- Newton International Fellowship (Royal Academy of Engineering)
- NERC [NE/D01185X/1, NE/K01627X/1, NE/F002149/1, NE/J023418/1, NE/J023531/1] Funding Source: UKRI
- Natural Environment Research Council [NE/C51621X/1, NE/J023531/1, NE/K01627X/1, NE/F002149/1, NE/J023418/1, NE/D01185X/1] Funding Source: researchfish
- Direct For Biological Sciences
- Division Of Environmental Biology [1146206] Funding Source: National Science Foundation
- Australian Research Council [FT0991448] Funding Source: Australian Research Council
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We examined whether variations in photosynthetic capacity are linked to variations in the environment and/or associated leaf traits for tropical moist forests (TMFs) in the Andes/western Amazon regions of Peru. We compared photosynthetic capacity (maximal rate of carboxylation of Rubisco (V-cmax), and the maximum rate of electron transport (J(max))), leaf mass, nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) per unit leaf area (M-a, N-a and P-a, respectively), and chlorophyll from 210 species at 18 field sites along a 3300-m elevation gradient. Western blots were used to quantify the abundance of the CO2-fixing enzyme Rubisco. Area- and N-based rates of photosynthetic capacity at 25 degrees C were higher in upland than lowland TMFs, underpinned by greater investment of N in photosynthesis in high-elevation trees. Soil [P] and leaf Pa were key explanatory factors for models of area-based Vcmax and Jmax but did not account for variations in photosynthetic N-use efficiency. At any given N-a and P-a, the fraction of N allocated to photosynthesis was higher in upland than lowland species. For a small subset of lowland TMF trees examined, a substantial fraction of Rubisco was inactive. These results highlight the importance of soil- and leaf-P in defining the photosynthetic capacity of TMFs, with variations in N allocation and Rubisco activation state further influencing photosynthetic rates and N-use efficiency of these critically important forests.
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