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Article

Harnessing Chlorophyll Fluorescence for Phenotyping Analysis of Wild and Cultivated Tomato for High Photochemical Efficiency under Water Deficit for Climate Change Resilience

by
Ilektra Sperdouli
1,
Ifigeneia Mellidou
1 and
Michael Moustakas
2,*
1
Institute of Plant Breeding and Genetic Resources, Hellenic Agricultural Organization-Demeter (ELGO-Dimitra), Thermi, GR-57001 Thessaloniki, Greece
2
Department of Botany, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, GR-54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Climate 2021, 9(11), 154; https://doi.org/10.3390/cli9110154
Submission received: 16 September 2021 / Revised: 15 October 2021 / Accepted: 19 October 2021 / Published: 21 October 2021

Abstract

Fluctuations of the weather conditions, due to global climate change, greatly influence plant growth and development, eventually affecting crop yield and quality, but also plant survival. Since water shortage is one of the key risks for the future of agriculture, exploring the capability of crop species to grow with limited water is therefore fundamental. By using chlorophyll fluorescence analysis, we evaluated the responses of wild tomato accession Solanum pennellii LA0716, Solanum lycopersicum cv. Μ82, the introgression line IL12-4 (from cv. M82 Χ LA0716), and the Greek tomato cultivars cv. Santorini and cv. Zakinthos, to moderate drought stress (MoDS) and severe drought stress (SDS), in order to identify the minimum irrigation level for efficient photosynthetic performance. Agronomic traits (plant height, number of leaves and root/shoot biomass), relative water content (RWC), and lipid peroxidation, were also measured. Under almost 50% deficit irrigation, S. pennellii exhibited an enhanced photosynthetic function by displaying a hormetic response of electron transport rate (ETR), due to an increased fraction of open reaction centers, it is suggested to be activated by the low increase of reactive oxygen species (ROS). A low increase of ROS is regarded to be beneficial by stimulating defense responses and also triggering a more oxidized redox state of quinone A (QA), corresponding in S. pennellii under 50% deficit irrigation, to the lowest stomatal opening, resulting in reduction of water loss. Solanumpennellii was the most tolerant to drought, as it was expected, and could manage to have an adequate photochemical function with almost 30% water regime of well-watered plants. With 50% deficit irrigation, cv. Μ82 and cv. Santorini did not show any difference in photochemical efficiency to control plants and are recommended to be cultivated under deficit irrigation as an effective strategy to enhance agricultural sustainability under a global climate change. We conclude that instead of the previously used Fv/Fm ratio, the redox state of QA, as it can be estimated by the chlorophyll fluorescence parameter 1 - qL, is a better indicator to evaluate photosynthetic efficiency and select drought tolerant cultivars under deficit irrigation.
Keywords: non-photochemical quenching (NPQ); moderate drought stress; severe drought stress; redox state; lipid peroxidation; singlet oxygen (1O2); hormesis; reactive oxygen species (ROS); Solanum lycopersicum; Solanum pennellii non-photochemical quenching (NPQ); moderate drought stress; severe drought stress; redox state; lipid peroxidation; singlet oxygen (1O2); hormesis; reactive oxygen species (ROS); Solanum lycopersicum; Solanum pennellii

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MDPI and ACS Style

Sperdouli, I.; Mellidou, I.; Moustakas, M. Harnessing Chlorophyll Fluorescence for Phenotyping Analysis of Wild and Cultivated Tomato for High Photochemical Efficiency under Water Deficit for Climate Change Resilience. Climate 2021, 9, 154. https://doi.org/10.3390/cli9110154

AMA Style

Sperdouli I, Mellidou I, Moustakas M. Harnessing Chlorophyll Fluorescence for Phenotyping Analysis of Wild and Cultivated Tomato for High Photochemical Efficiency under Water Deficit for Climate Change Resilience. Climate. 2021; 9(11):154. https://doi.org/10.3390/cli9110154

Chicago/Turabian Style

Sperdouli, Ilektra, Ifigeneia Mellidou, and Michael Moustakas. 2021. "Harnessing Chlorophyll Fluorescence for Phenotyping Analysis of Wild and Cultivated Tomato for High Photochemical Efficiency under Water Deficit for Climate Change Resilience" Climate 9, no. 11: 154. https://doi.org/10.3390/cli9110154

APA Style

Sperdouli, I., Mellidou, I., & Moustakas, M. (2021). Harnessing Chlorophyll Fluorescence for Phenotyping Analysis of Wild and Cultivated Tomato for High Photochemical Efficiency under Water Deficit for Climate Change Resilience. Climate, 9(11), 154. https://doi.org/10.3390/cli9110154

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