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Premise: A comparison of methods using different materials to exclude light from stems to prevent stem CO2 exchange (i.e., photosynthesis), without affecting stem conductance to water vapor, surface temperature, and relative humidity, was conducted on stems of avocado trees in California. Methods and Results: The experiment featured three materials: aluminum foil, paper‐based wrap, and mineral‐based paint. We examined stem CO2 exchange with and without the light exclusion treatments. We also examined stem surface temperature, relative humidity, and photosynthetic active radiation (PAR) under the cover materials. All materials reduced PAR and stem CO2 exchange. However, aluminum foil reduced stem surface temperature and increased relative humidity. Conclusions: Methods used to study stem CO2 exchange through light exclusion have historically relied on methods that may induce experimental artifacts. Among the methods tested here, mineral‐based paint effectively reduced PAR without affecting stem surface temperature and relative humidity around the stem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Leaves with stomata on both upper and lower surfaces, termed amphistomatous, are relatively rare compared with hypostomatous leaves with stomata only on the lower surface. Amphistomaty occurs predominantly in fast‐growing herbaceous annuals and in slow‐growing perennial shrubs and trees. In this paper, we present the current understanding and hypotheses on the costs and benefits of amphistomaty related to water and CO2 transport in contrasting leaf morphologies. First, there is no evidence that amphistomatous species achieve higher stomatal densities on a projected leaf area basis than hypostomatous species, but two‐sided gas exchange is less limited by boundary layer effects. Second, amphistomaty may provide a specific advantage in thick leaves by shortening the pathway for CO2 transport between the atmosphere and the chloroplasts. In thin leaves of fast‐growing herbaceous annuals, in which both the adaxial and abaxial pathways are already short, amphistomaty enhances leaf–atmosphere gas‐exchange capacity. Third, amphistomaty may help to optimise the leaf‐interior water status for CO2 transport by reducing temperature gradients and so preventing the condensation of water that could limit CO2 diffusion. Fourth, a potential cost of amphistomaty is the need for additional investments in leaf water transport tissue to balance the water loss through the adaxial surface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThis paper reviews two decades of effort by the scientific community in a search for predictive understanding of plant responses to elevated [CO2]. To evaluate the progress of research in leaf photosynthesis, plant respiration, root nutrient uptake, and carbon partitioning, we divided scientific activities into four phases: (I) initial assessments derived from our existing knowledge base to provide frameworks for experimental studies; (II) experimental tests of the initial assessments; (III) in cases where assessments were invalidated, synthesis of experimental results to stimulate alternative hypotheses and further experimentation; and (IV) formation of new knowledge. This paper suggests that photosynthetic research may have gone through all four phases, considering that (a) variable responses of photosynthesis to [CO2] are generally explainable, (b) extrapolation of leaf-level studies to the global scale has been examined, and (c) molecular studies are under way. Investigation of plant respiratory responses to [CO2] has reached the third phase: experimental results have been accumulated, and mechanistic approaches are being developed to examine alternative hypotheses in search for new concepts and/or new quantitative frameworks to understand respiratory responses to elevated [CO2]. The study of nutrient uptake kinetics is still in the second phase: experimental evidence has contradicted some of the initial assessments, and more experimental studies need to be designed before generalizations can be made. It is quite unfortunate that we have not made much progress in understanding mechanisms of carbon partitioning during the past two decades. This is due in part to the fact that some of the holistic theories, such as functional balance and optimality, have not evolved into testable hypotheses to guide experimental studies. This paper urges modelers to play an increasing role in plant–CO2 research by disassembling these existing theories into hypotheses and urges experimentalists to design experiments to examine these holistic concepts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The scaling of CO2 and water vapour transfer from leaf to canopy dimensions was achieved by integrating mechanistic models for physiological (photosynthesis, stomatal conductance and soil/root and bole respiration) and micrometeorological (radiative transfer, turbulent transfer and surface energy exchanges) processes. The main objectives of this paper are to describe a canopy photosynthesis and evaporation model for a temperate broadleaf forest and to test it against field measurements. The other goal of this paper is to use the validated model to address some contemporary ecological and physiological questions concerning the transfer of carbon and water between forest canopies and the atmosphere. In particular, we examine the role of simple versus complex radiative transfer models and the effect of environmental (solar radiation and CO2) and ecophysiological (photosynthetic capacity) variables on canopy-scale carbon and water vapour fluxes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the design features and capabilities of a portable automated in-situ closed chamber (ISCC) for the quantification of CO2 fluxes in dryland soils where both photosynthetic and respiratory components may be associated with a cyanobacterial crust. The processes of CO2 flux in dryland soils are briefly described in order to clarify the conditions that make quantification of these fluxes problematic. The instrumentation currently available for in-situ soil CO2 flux measurements is then reviewed demonstrating their inadequacies for the dryland environment. The ISCC described here is a member of the closed or enrichment class of soil respiration chambers. The ISCC, however, features an optical window possessing high (>90%) transmission in the photosynthetic active region (PAR) of the solar irradiance spectrum, permitting observations of photosynthesis. The ISCC possesses automatic venting and purging so that gaseous concentrations inside the chamber do not change from ambient sufficiently to significantly affect diffusion. The ISCC features both active and passive cooling employing internal solid-state Peltier coolers and external aluminised Mylar respectively. This avoids severe disturbance of the microclimate within the chamber due to admission of high fluxes of PAR and permits in-situ operation under a wide range of ambient field temperatures (~ −5 to 40°C). Sensors internal to the chamber monitor temperature, relative humidity, irradiance and pressure. In this implementation the ISCC is coupled to a portable gas chromatograph (Agilent GC-3000) to sample the chamber atmosphere. Indicative data for Kalahari Sand soils of Botswana are presented as an illustration of the general performance characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This paper presents the results of 2 yr of CO2 flux measurements on grassland communities of varying species richness, exposed to either the current or a warmer climate. • We grew experimental plant communities containing one, three or nine grassland species in 12 sunlit, climate-controlled chambers. Half of these chambers were exposed to ambient air temperatures, while the other half were warmed by 3°C. Equal amounts of water were added to heated and unheated communities, implying drier soils if warming increased evapotranspiration. Three main CO2 fluxes (gross photosynthesis, above-ground and below-ground respiration) were measured multiple times per year and reconstructed hourly or half-hourly by relating them to their most important environmental driver. • While CO2 outputs through respiration were largely unchanged under warming, CO2 inputs through photosynthesis were lowered, especially in summer, when heat and drought stress were higher. Above-ground CO2 fluxes were significantly increased in multispecies communities, as more complementary resource use stimulated productivity. Finally, effects of warming appeared to be smallest in monocultures. • This study shows that in a future warmer climate the CO2 sink capacity of temperate grasslands could decline, and that such adverse effects are not likely to be mitigated by efforts to maintain or increase species richness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Net ecosystem production is the residual of two much larger fluxes: photosynthesis and respiration. While photosynthesis is a single process with a well-established theoretical underpinning, respiration integrates the variety of plant and microbial processes by which CO2 returns from ecosystems to the atmosphere. Limits to current capacity for predicting ecosystem respiration fluxes across biomes or years result from the mismatch between what is usually measured – bulk CO2 fluxes – and what process-based models can predict – fluxes of CO2 from plant (autotrophic) or microbial (heterotrophic) respiration. Papers in this Thematic Issue and in the recent literature, document advances in methods for separating respiration into autotrophic and heterotrophic components using three approaches: (1) continuous measurements of CO2 fluxes and assimilation of these data into process-based models; (2) application of isotope measurements, particularly radiocarbon; and (3) manipulation experiments. They highlight the role of allocation of C fixed by plants to respiration, storage, growth or transfer to other organisms as a control of seasonal and interannual variability in soil respiration and the oxidation state of C in the terrestrial biosphere. A second theme is the potential for comparing C isotope signatures in organic matter, CO2 evolved in incubations and microbial biomarkers to elucidate the pathways (respiration, recycling, or transformation) of C during decomposition. Together, these factors determine the continuum of timescales over which C is returned to the atmosphere by respiration and enable testing of theories of plant and microbial respiration that go beyond empirical models and allow predictions of future respiration responses to future change in climate, pollution and land use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rising levels of atmospheric CO2 can alter plant growth and partitioning to secondary metabolites. The protein competition model (PCM) and the extended growth/differentiation balance model (GDBe) are similar but alternative models that address ontogenetic and environmental effects on whole-plant carbon partitioning to the phenylpropanoid biosynthetic pathway, making many divergent predictions. To test the validity of the models, we compare plant responses to one key prediction: if CO2 enrichment simultaneously stimulates both photosynthesis and growth, then PCM predicts that partitioning to phenolic compounds will decline, whereas GDBe generally predicts the opposite. Elevated CO2 (at 548 ppm) increased the biomass growth (ca 23%) as well as the net photosynthesis (ca 13%) of 1-year-old potted paper birch, Betula papyrifera Marsh., in a free air carbon dioxide enrichment study (FACE) in northern Wisconsin. Concomitantly, elevated CO2 increased carbon partitioning to all measured classes of phenolics (Folin-Denis phenolics, HPLC low molecular weight phenolics (i.e. cinnamic acid derivatives, flavonol glycosides, and flavon-3-ols), condensed tannins, and acid-detergent lignin) in leaves. In stem tissues, tannins and lignin increased, but F-D phenolics did not. In root tissues, F-D phenolics, and tannins increased, but lignin did not. The data suggest that CO2 enrichment stimulated pathway-wide increase in carbon partitioning to phenylpropanoids. High CO2 plants had 11.8% more F-D phenolics, 19.3% more tannin, and 10% more lignin than ambient plants after adjusting for plant mass via analysis of covariance. In general, the results unequivocally support the predictions of the GDBe model. By way of contrast, results from many parallel studies on FACE trembling aspen, Populus tremuloides Michx., suggest that although CO2 enrichment has consistently stimulated both photosynthesis and growth, it apparently did not generally stimulate pathway-wide increases, or decreases, in carbon partitioning to phenylpropanoids in leaves and wood, but rather has specifically, though not consistently, increased partitioning to foliar phenolic glycosides. Likewise, in this case, GDBe's predictions better accord with the FACE aspen data than PCM's. If further tests of the two models also support GDB rather than PCM, then PCM's main assumption (whole-plant N rather than C is limiting partitioning to phenolic synthesis) may be incorrect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The objective of the present paper is to determine the response of the physiological parameters related to biomass production and plant water relations in a standard Sri Lankan rice (Oryza sativa ) variety (BG-300) to elevated CO2 (i.e. 570 µmol/mol). During two seasons, rice crops were grown under three different experimental treatments; namely, at 570 µmol/mol (i.e. ‘elevated’) and 370 µmol/mol (‘ambient’) CO2 within open top chambers, and at ambient CO2 under open field conditions. Leaf net photosynthetic rate in the elevated treatment increased by 22–75 % in comparison to the ambient. However, the ratio between intercellular and ambient CO2 concentrations remained constant across different CO2 treatments and seasons. CO2 enrichment decreased individual leaf stomatal conductance and transpiration rate per unit leaf area, and increased both leaf and canopy temperatures. However, the overall canopy stomatal conductance and daily total canopy transpiration rate of the elevated treatment were approximately the same as those achieved under ambient conditions. This was because of the significantly greater leaf area index and greater leaf–air vapour pressure deficit under CO2 enrichment. The leaf chlorophyll content increased significantly under elevated CO2 ; however, the efficiency (i.e. photochemical yield) of light energy capture by Photosystem II (i.e. F v /F m ) in chlorophyll a did not show a significant and consistent variation with CO2 enrichment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SummaryThe high-arctic environment is an environment where the consequences of global warming may be significant. In this paper we report on findings on carbon dioxide and water vapour fluxes above a sedge-dominated fen at Zackenberg (74°28′N, 20°34′ W) in The National Park of North and East Greenland. Eddy covariance measurements were initiated at the start of the growing season and terminated shortly before its end lasting 45 days. The net CO2 flux during daytime reaches a high of 10 μmol m–2s–1, and around the summer solstice, net CO2 assimilation occurred at midnight, resulting in net carbon gain during the night. The measured carbon dioxide fluxes compare well to estimates based on the photosynthesis model by Collatz et al. (1991). The total growing-season net ecosystem CO2 exchange was estimated to be 96 g C m–2 based on the carbon dioxide model and micrometeorological data. Finally, the combined CO2 assimilation and soil respiration models are used for examining the dependence of the carbon dioxide budget on temperature. The ecosystem is found to function optimally given the present temperature conditions whereas either an increase or a decrease in temperature would reduce the ecosystem CO2 accumulation. An increase in temperature by 5 °C would turn the ecosystem into a carbon dioxide source. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThe microclimate in facilities for studying effects of elevated CO2 on crops differs from ambient conditions. Open-top chambers (OTCs) increase temperature by 1–3 °C. If temperature and CO2 interact in their effect on crops, this would limit the value of OTC experiments. Furthermore, interaction of CO2 and temperature deserves study because increases in atmospheric CO2 concentration are expected to cause global warming. This paper describes two experiments in which a recently developed cooling system for OTCs was used to analyse the effects of temperature on photosynthesis, growth and yield of spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L., cv. Minaret). Two levels of CO2 were used (350 and 700 ppm), and two levels of temperature, with cooled OTCs being 1.6–2.4 °C colder than noncooled OTCs. Photosynthetic rates were increased by elevated CO2, but no effect of temperature was found. Cross-switching CO2 concentrations as well as determination of A–Ci curves showed that plant photosynthetic capacity after anthesis acclimated to elevated CO2. The acclimation may be related to the effects of CO2 on tissue composition: elevated CO2 decreased leaf nitrogen concentrations and increased sugar content. Calculations of the seasonal mean crop light-use efficiency (LUE) were consistent with the photosynthesis data in that CO2 increased LUE by 20% on average whereas temperature had no effect. Both elevating CO2 and cooling increased grain yield, by an average of 11% and 23%, respectively. CO2 and temperature stimulated yield via different mechanisms: CO2 increased photosynthetic rate, but decreased crop light interception capacity (LAI), whereas cooling increased grain yield by increasing LAI and extending the growing season with 10 days. The effects of CO2 and temperature were not additive: the CO2 effect was about doubled in the noncooled open-top chambers. In most cases, effects on yield were mediated through increased grain density rather than increased individual grain weights. The higher growth response to elevated CO2 in noncooled vs. cooled OTCs shows that a cooling system may remove a bias towards overestimating crop growth response to CO2 in open-top chambers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Branch bags were used to expose branches on mature Sitka spruce trees to either ambient [CO2] (A) or elevated [CO2] (E) for 4 yr. This paper reports the effects of this treatment on the growth, development and phenology of the branches, including shoot expansion, shoot numbers, needle dimensions, needle numbers and stomatal density. The effect of elevated [CO2] on the relationship between leaf area and sapwood area was investigated Exposure to elevated [CO2] doubled photosynthetic rates in current-year shoots and, despite sonic down- regulation, 1-yr-old E shoots also had higher rates of photosynthesis than their A counterpart. Thus the amount of assimilate fixed by E branches was substantially more than that fixed by A branches: however, this increase in the local production of assimilate did not lead to an increase in non -structural carbohydrate or stimulate growth or meristematic activity within the E branches. There was a very consistent relationship between leaf area and stem cross-sectional area that was not influenced by [CO2]. However, unbagged branches had thicker stems than bagged branches, resulting in a slightly lower ratio of leaf area to cross-sectional area. The implications of the results tot the modelling of growth and allocation and the potential utility of the branch bag technique are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ventilated Solardomes (hemispherical glasshouses) have been used for 20 yr for studying the effects of gaseous pollutants on plants. This paper describes a computer-operated facility for studying the effects of CO2 × temperature regimes on plants. The eight chambers were set up for factorial design experiments - with two levels of CO2 (ambient and ambient+ 340 ppmv), two levels of temperature (ambient and 3 °C tracked continuously above ambient) and two replicates of each CO2 × temperature treatment. Monitoring of environmental conditions within the chambers over a 2 yr period has shown highly effective control of CO2 and temperature regimes. Even with high-quality and u.v.-B transmitting glass, the irradiance in the PAR region was reduced by 18% within the domes. Variation in temperature across the radii of the domes increased with higher photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD). Vapour pressure deficits (VPDs) in the ambient temperature domes compared well with outside conditions but were higher in the elevated temperature domes. The watering regime within the domes affected intermittently the relationship between 'dome' and 'outside' VPDs. The Solardome facility has been used extensively for studies of the impacts of climate change within the UK Programme on Terrestrial Initiative on Global Environmental Research (TIGER). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Theoretical developments in our understanding of leaf gas exchange processes and carbon isotope composition (δ13C) mean that it should now be possible to model their responses to global environmental change. Such a model would be of use for process-based interpretations of historical changes in leaf δ13C and for understanding the global stable carbon isotope balance. This paper describes the development and validation of a model towards this aim. The resulting model is used to simulate changes in leaf photosynthesis, stomatal conductance and δ13C of limber pine (Pinus flexilis) in response to the past 30000 y of global environmental change. The predictions of needle δ13C are in line with reported measurements of δ13C from fossilized Pinus flexilis needles preserved in packrat middens in western USA. Leaf gas exchange predictions show that the increased water use efficiency (WUE) of these trees growing in present-day environments, relative to the past, was brought about through an increase in photosynthetic rates and a decrease in stomatal conductance. This contrasts with the explanation of the recent (past 200 y) increase in the WUE of temperate and Mediterranean ecosystems inferred from δ13C measurements which are predicted by the model to have arisen largely by a decrease in stomatal conductance in response to increases in the concentration of atmospheric CO2 since the pre-industrial era. The model as described offers the potential to contribute to our understanding of vegetation effects on the global carbon isotope balance during the glacial periods, and therefore to provide a further constraint on the carbon cycle models used to explain the low concentrations of atmospheric CO2 at these times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because of their prominent role in the global carbon balance and their possible carbon sequestration, trees are very important organisms in relation to global climatic changes. Knowledge of these processes is the key to understanding the functioning of the whole forest ecosystem which can be modelled and predicted based on the physiological process information. This paper reviews the major methods and techniques used to examine the likely effects of elevated CO2 on woody plants, as well as the major physiological responses of trees to elevated CO2. The available exposure techniques and approaches are described. An overview table with all relevant literature data over the period 1989-93 summarizes the percent changes in biomass. root/shoot ratio, photosynthesis, leaf area and water use efficiency under elevated CO2. Interaction between growth, photosynthesis and nutrition is discussed with a special emphasis on downward regulation of photosynthesis. The stimulation or reduction found in the respiratory processes of woody plants are reviewed, as well as the effect of elevated CO2 on stomatal density, conductance and water use efficiency. Changes in plant quality and their consequences are examined. Changes in underground processes under elevated CO2 are especially emphasized and related to the functioning of the ecosystem. Some directions for future research arc put forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In saturating irradiances of red light, photosynthesis of Laminaria saccharina (L.) Lamouroux was stimulated by low irradiances of continuous blue light only when the supply of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) was limiting. The degree of this stimulation was inversely proportional to the logarithm of the concentration of free CO2, whether this was adjusted by varying the total DIC or the pH at a given DIC concentration. The final pH reached in a closed system was higher in blue light than in red light. Both acetazolamide and ethoxyzolamide suppressed the responses to blue light almost completely, but reduced photosynthesis in red light by only 30%. Buffering the pH of the seawater also suppressed the stimulation of photosynthesis by blue light without affecting the photosynthetic rate in red light. The transient stimulation of O2 evolution by a blue light pulse was not accompanied by a corresponding increase in CO2 consumption. These observations could be explained if, in analogy to the mechanism proposed for Ectocarpus (Schmid, Mills & Dring 1996, Plant Cell and Environment 19, 373-382, this issue, accompanying paper), photosynthesis was supported by a blue- light-activated release of CO2 from an internal store. We suggest that the store is located in the vacuoles of the cortical tissue of the blades. The main photosynthetic tissue, however, is in the overlying meristoderm, and blue-light- activated mobilization of the store could stimulate O2 evolution only if periplasmic carbonic anhydrase was available to facilitate CO2 uptake from the cortex. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to parametrize a leaf submodel of a canopy level gas-exchange model, a series of photosynthesis and stomatal conductance measurements were made on leaves of white oak (Quercus alba L.) and red maple (Acer rubrum L.) in a mature deciduous forest near Oak Ridge, TN. Gas-exchange characteristics of sun leaves growing at the top of a 30 m canopy and of shade leaves growing at a depth of 3-4 m from the top of the canopy were determined. Measured rates of net photosynthesis at a leaf temperature of 30 °C and saturating photosynthetic photon flux density, expressed on a leaf area basis, were significantly lower (P = 0.01; n = 8) in shade leaves (7.9 μmol m-2 S-1) than in sun leaves (11.5 μmol m-2 S-1). Specific leaf area increased significantly with depth in the canopy, and when photosynthesis rates were expressed on a dry mass basis, they were not significantly different for shade and sun leaves. The percentage leaf nitrogen did not vary significantly with height in the canopy; thus, rates expressed on a per unit nitrogen basis were also not significantly different in shade and sun leaves. A widely used model integrating photosynthesis and stomatal conductance was parametrized independently for sun and shade leaves, enabling us to model successfully diurnal variations in photosynthesis and evapotranspiration of both classes of leaves. Key photosynthesis model parameters were found to scale with leaf nitrogen levels. The leaf model parametrizations were then incorporated into a canopy-scale gas-exchange model that is discussed and tested in a companion paper (Baldocchi & Harley 1995, Plant, Cell and Environment 18, 1157-1173). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the construction and performance of branch bags and a CO2 control system used to fumigate branches of mature Sitka spruce trees with air enriched in CO2 (700 μmol mol-1). It contains some examples of results obtained using the system over the course of the first two growing seasons. The branch bags have run continuously for 2 years with very few problems. CO2 concentrations were within 20 μmol mol-1 of the target concentration for more than 90% of the time. Temperatures within the bags were slightly higher than ambient (1-2 °C) and this had some effect on phenology. Attenuation of quantum flux density (photosynthetically active radiation) was 10-45%. The branch bag system has enabled investigation into the effects of elevated CO2 on mature tissue without the problems and expense of fumigating whole trees, Growth in elevated CO2 resulted in an increase in starch and a decrease in soluble protein content of needles, Stomatal conductance was higher in elevated CO2 grown needles, and there was some evidence of an increase in photosynthetic capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While photosynthesis of C3 plants is stimulated by an increase in the spheric CO2 concentration, photosynthetic capacity is often reduced after tong-term exposure to elevated CO2. This reduction appears to be brought about by end product inhibition, resulting from an imbalance in the supply and demand of carbohydrates. A review of the literature revealed that the reduction of photosynthetic capacity in elevated CO2 was most pronounced when the increased supply of carbohydrates was combined with small sink size. The volume of pots in which plants were grown affected the sink size by restricting root growth. While plants grown in small pots had a reduced photosynthetic capacity, plants grown in the field showed no reduction or an increase in this capacity. Pot volume also determined the effect of elevated CO2 on the root/shoot ratio: the root/shoot ratio increased when root growth was not restricted and decreased in plants grown in small pots. The data presented in this paper suggest that plants growing in the field will maintain a high photosynthetic capacity as the atmospheric CO2 level continues to rise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The CO2 partial pressure in the chloroplasts of intact photosynthetic C3 leaves is thought to be less than the intercellular CO2 partial pressure. The intercellular CO2 partial pressure can be calculated from CO2 and H2O gas exchange measurements, whereas the CO2 partial pressure in the chloroplasts is unknown. The conductance of CO2 from the inter-cellular space to the chloroplast stroma and the CO2 partial pressure in the chloroplast stroma can be calculated if the properties of photosynthetic gas exchange are compared with the kinetics of the enzyme ribulose 1 ,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/ oxygenase (RuBPCO). A discrepancy between gas exchange and RuBPCO kinetics can be attributed to a deviation of CO2 partial pressure in the chloroplast stroma from that calculated in the intercellular space. This paper is concerned with the following: estimation of the kinetic constants of RuBPCO and their comparison with the CO2 compensation concentration; their comparison with differential uptake of 14CO2 and 12CO2 and their comparison with O2 dependence of net CO2 uptake of photosynthetic leaves. Discrepancy between RuBPCO kinetics and gas exchange was found at a temperature of 12.5 °C, a photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) of 550 μmol quanta m-2 s-1, and an ambient CO2 partial pressure of 40 Pa. Consistency between RuBPCO kinetics and gas exchange was found if CO2 partial pressure was decreased, temperature increased and PPFD decreased. The results suggest that a discrepancy between RuBPCO kinetics and gas exchange is due to a diffusion resistance for CO2 across the chloroplast envelope which decreases with increasing temperature. At low CO2 partial pressure, the diffusion resistance appears to be counterbalanced by active CO2 (or HCO3-) transport with high affinity and low maximum velocity. At low PPFD, CO2 partial pressure in the chloroplast stroma appears to be in equilibrium with that in the intercellular space due to low CO2 flux. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The after-effect of wind on photosynthesis and transpiration of Festuca arundinacea Schreb., was determined. Following a period of exposure in a controlled environment wind tunnel the wind-treated plants showed reduced rates of photo-synthesis when compared with the controls under standard conditions. Evaporation from paper model tillers was measured and the boundary layer resistance was shown to be low in all but very low wind speeds. Analysis of CO2 and H2O diffusion pathways indicated that mesophyll resistance in wind-treated plants was higher whilst leaf surface resistance was lower than in the controls. The high mesophyll resistance in the wind-treated plants was attributed to reduced water content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]