Photosynthetica 2018, 56(4):981-988 | DOI: 10.1007/s11099-018-0818-4

The effects of phenolic acids on the photosynthetic characteristics and growth of Populus × euramericana cv. 'Neva' seedlings

D. F. Xie1,2, G. C. Zhang2,*, X. X. Xia3, Y. Lang1, S. Y. Zhang2
1 College of Agriculture and Forestry Science, Linyi University, Linyi, China
2 Shandong Province Key Laboratory of Soil Erosion and Ecological Restoration, College of Forestry, Shandong Agricultural University, Taishan Forest Eco-station of State Forestry Administration, Tai'an, China
3 Nanjing Tongfuyuan Environmental Technology Company Limited, Nanjing, China

Populus × euramericana cv. 'Neva' is an important tree species in northern China. In the study, we used its potted oneyear- old seedlings as experimental material and established three treatments (CK, 0.5X, and 1.0X) according to the concentrations of phenolic acids in order to examine the effects of different concentrations on the photosynthetic characteristics and growth of poplar. With increasing concentrations of phenolic acids, the net photosynthetic rate, stomatal limitation, transpiration rate, apparent quantum yield, photochemical quenching coefficient, electron transport rate, chlorophyll content, and total biomass decreased significantly. The intercellular CO2 concentration, light-compensation point, nonphotochemical quenching, malondialdehyde content, and root/shoot ratio increased significantly. Peroxidase and superoxide dismutase activities initially decreased and then increased. We concluded that phenolic acids significantly inhibited poplar's photosynthesis and the higher phenolic acid concentration, the greater inhibition of photosynthesis occurred. This inhibition effect was mainly caused by nonstomatal factors. Phenolic acids induced noticeable photoinhibition, resulted in the irreversible damage of membrane structure, and then changed intracellular metabolic processes. To cope with phenolic acid stress, poplar seedlings increased dissipation of excess light energy and distributed relatively more biomass to underground parts within carbon allocation.

Keywords: allelochemical; chlorophyll fluorescence; CO2 assimilative capacity; light response; light-use efficiency; reactive oxygen species

Received: May 4, 2017; Accepted: November 15, 2017; Prepublished online: December 1, 2018; Published: November 1, 2018Show citation

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Xie, D.F., Zhang, G.C., Xia, X.X., Lang, Y., & Zhang, S.Y. (2018). The effects of phenolic acids on the photosynthetic characteristics and growth of Populus × euramericana cv. 'Neva' seedlings. Photosynthetica, 56(4), 981-988. doi: 10.1007/s11099-018-0818-4.
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