Aridity-driven changes in structural and physiological characteristics of Buffel grass (Cenchrus ciliaris L.) from different ecozones of Punjab Pakistan

Amina Ameer; Farooq Ahmad; Naila Asghar; Mansoor Hameed; Khawaja Shafique Ahmad; Ansar Mehmood; Fahim Nawaz; Muhammad Asif Shehzad; Sahar Mumtaz; Muhammad Kaleem; Ummar Iqbal

doi:10.1007/s12298-023-01351-3

Aridity-driven changes in structural and physiological characteristics of Buffel grass (Cenchrus ciliaris L.) from different ecozones of Punjab Pakistan

Physiol Mol Biol Plants. 2023 Aug;29(8):1205-1224. doi: 10.1007/s12298-023-01351-3. Epub 2023 Sep 21.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Botany, University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Faisalabad, 38000 Pakistan.
² Department of Botany, University of Poonch Rawalakot, Rawalakot, 12350 AJK Pakistan.
³ Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia.
⁴ Institute of Plant Breeding and Biotechnology, MNS University of Agriculture, Multan, 66000 Pakistan.
⁵ Division of Science and Technology, Department of Botany, University of Education, Lahore, 54770 Pakistan.
⁶ Department of Botany, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Rahim Yar Khan Campus, Bahawalpur, 64200 Pakistan.

Abstract

Cenchrus ciliaris L. is a perennial grass that can grow in a diverse range of habitats including challenging deserts. The purpose of the study was to investigate the impact of aridity on morpho-anatomical and physiological traits in C. ciliaris populations collected from arid and semi-arid areas of Punjab, Pakistan. The populations growing in extremely arid conditions displayed a range of structural and physiological adaptations. Under extremely dry conditions, root epidermal thickness (90.29 µm), cortical cell area (7677.78 µm²), and metaxylem cell area (11,884.79 µm²) increased while root pith cell area (2681.96 µm²) decreased in tolerant populations. The populations under extremely aridity maximized leaf lamina (184.21 µm) and midrib thickness (316.46 µm). Additionally, highly tolerant populations were characterized by the accumulation of organic osmolytes such as glycinebetaine (132.60 µmol g^-1 FW) was increased in QN poulations, proline (118.01 µmol g^-1 F.W) was maximum in DF populations, and total amino acids (69.90 mg g^-1 FW) under extreme water deficit conditions. In arid conditions, abaxial stomatal density (2630.21 µm) and stomatal area (8 per mm²) were also reduced in DF populations to check water loss through transpiration. These findings suggest that various parameters are crucial for the survival of C. ciliaris in arid environments. The main strategies used by C. ciliaris was intensive sclerification, effective retention of ions, and osmotic adjustment through proline and glycinebetaine under arid conditions.

Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12298-023-01351-3.

Keywords: Anatomical modifications; Aridity; Ion accumulations; Osmotic adjustment; Sclerification.

© Prof. H.S. Srivastava Foundation for Science and Society 2023. Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.