Climate change is expected to lead to increases in drought frequency and severity, with deleterious effects on many ecosystems. Stomatal responses to changing environmental conditions form the backbone of all ecosystem models, but are based on empirical relationships and are not well-tested during drought conditions. Here, we use a dataset of 34 woody plant species spanning global forest biomes...

BACKGROUND Both leaf attributes and stomatal traits are linked to water economy in land plants. However, it is unclear whether these two components are associated evolutionarily. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS In characterizing the possible effect of phylogeny on leaf attributes and stomatal traits, we hypothesized that a correlated evolution exists between the two. Using a phylogenetic compa...

We conducted an infrared thermal imaging-based genetic screen to identify Arabidopsis mutants displaying aberrant stomatal behavior in response to elevated concentrations of CO2 . This approach resulted in the isolation of a novel allele of the Arabidopsis BIG locus (At3g02260) that we have called CO2 insensitive 1 (cis1). BIG mutants are compromised in elevated CO2 -induced stomatal closure an...

Much is known about the physiological control of stomatal aperture as a means by which plants adjust to water availability. By contrast, the role played by the modulation of stomatal development to limit water loss has received much less attention. The control of stomatal development in response to water deprivation in the genus Populus is explored here. Drought induced declines in stomatal con...

Cytosolic Ca(2+) ([Ca(2+)](cyt)) mediates diverse cellular responses in both animal and plant cells in response to various stimuli. Calcium oscillation amplitude and frequency control gene expression. In stomatal guard cells, [Ca(2+)](cyt) has been shown to regulate stomatal movements, and a defined window of Ca(2+) oscillation kinetic parameters encodes necessary information for long-term stom...

Understanding stomatal regulation during drought is essential to correctly predict vegetation-atmosphere fluxes. Stomatal optimization models posit that stomata maximize the carbon gain relative a penalty caused by water loss, such as xylem cavitation. However, mechanism allows behave optimally unknown. Here, we introduce model of results in similar behaviour without presupposing an optimality ...

Physiological control of stomatal conductance (Gs) permits plants to balance CO2-uptake for photosynthesis (PN) against water-loss, so optimizing water use efficiency (WUE). An increase in the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide ([CO2]) will result in a stimulation of PN and reduction of Gs in many plants, enhancing carbon gain while reducing water-loss. It has also been hypothesized th...

Plants use stomatal closure mediated by elicitors as the first step of the innate immune response to restrict the microbial entry. We present a comprehensive study of the effect of cryptogein and harpin, two elicitors from microbial pathogens of tobacco, on stomatal closure and guard cell signaling components in Arabidopsis thaliana, a model plant. Cryptogein as well as harpin induced stomatal ...

Stomata are pores in the plant epidermis that control carbon dioxide uptake and water loss. They are major regulators of global carbon and water cycles [1]. Several signaling components that regulate stomatal development have been characterized. These include a putative secretory peptide EPF1, LRR receptor components TMM and ER, and a peptidase SDD1 [2-4]. We have identified EPF2, a peptide rel...

Stomata are specialized epidermal structures that regulate gas (CO(2) and O(2)) and water vapor exchange between plants and their environment. In Arabidopsis thaliana, stomatal development is preceded by asymmetric cell divisions, and stomatal distribution follows the one-cell spacing rule, reflecting the coordination of cell fate specification. Stomatal development and patterning are regulated...