Surface plasmon resonance: An innovative method for studying water permeability of plant cuticles.

The cuticle forms an effective barrier protecting plants from water loss. Its permeability to water and other compounds significantly differs between species, types of cuticle (stomatous, astomatous), and can be affected by a wide variety of ambient conditions. Enzymatic isolation of the leaf cuticle allows obtaining intact cuticles for permeability measurements.

Modulating the activities of chloroplasts and mitochondria promotes adenosine triphosphate production and plant growth.

Efficient photosynthesis requires a balance of ATP and NADPH production/consumption in chloroplasts, and the exportation of reducing equivalents from chloroplasts is important for balancing stromal ATP/NADPH ratio. Here, we showed that the overexpression of purple acid phosphatase 2 on the outer membranes of chloroplasts and mitochondria can streamline the production and consumption of reducing equivalents in these two organelles, respectively. A higher capacity of consumption of reducing equivalents in mitochondria can indirectly help chloroplasts to balance the ATP/NADPH ratio in stroma and recycle NADP, the electron acceptors of the linear electron flow (LEF).

A modified method for enzymatic isolation of and subsequent wax extraction from leaf cuticle.

Background: The plant cuticle represents one of the major adaptations of vascular plants to terrestrial life. Cuticular permeability and chemical composition differ among species. is a widely used model for biochemical and molecular genetic studies in plants.

Seasonal variation of δO and δH in leaf water of Fagus sylvatica L. and related water compartments.

The study aims to assess variability in leaf water isotopic enrichment occurring in the field under natural conditions. We focused on seasonal variation and difference between sun-exposed and shaded leaves. Isotopic composition (δO, δH) of leaf water was monitored in a beech tree (Fagus sylvatica L.

Stomatal function, density and pattern, and CO assimilation in Arabidopsis thaliana tmm1 and sdd1-1 mutants.

Stomata modulate the exchange of water and CO between plant and atmosphere. Although stomatal density is known to affect CO diffusion into the leaf and thus photosynthetic rate, the effect of stomatal density and patterning on CO assimilation is not fully understood. We used wild types Col-0 and C24 and stomatal mutants sdd1-1 and tmm1 of Arabidopsis thaliana, differing in stomatal density and pattern, to study the effects of these variations on both stomatal and mesophyll conductance and CO assimilation rate.