Leaf expansion in grasses under salt stress

EDITH TALEISNIK; ANDRES ALBERTO RODRIGUEZ; DOLORES BUSTOS; LÁSZLÓ ERDEI; LEANDRO ORTEGA; MARÍA EUGENIA SENN

JOURNAL OF PLANT PHYSIOLOGY

ELSEVIER GMBH

Año: 2009 vol. 166 p. 1123 - 1140

0176-1617

Restrictions in leaf growth are among the earliest visible effects of many stress conditions, including salinity. Since leaves determine radiation interception and are the main photosynthetic organs, salinity effects on leaf expansion and function are directly related to yield constraints under saline conditions. The expanding zone of leaf blades spans from the meristem to the region where cells reach their final length. Kinematic methods are used for the description of cell division and cell expansion activities within it. Analyses of this type have indicated that the reduction in leaf expansion by salinity may be exerted through effects on both cell division and expansion. In turn, the components of vacuole-driven cell expansion may be differentially affected by salinity and examination of the effects of this stress on osmotic and mechanical constraints to cell expansion have gradually lead to the identification of the gene products involved in such control. Reactive oxygen species effects on cell expansion is an emerging topic in the regulation of leaf growth by salinity.