Hydraulic activation of stomata (HAS) - development; impact on nutrient and water balance; application

• Applicant: Privatdozent Dr. Jürgen Burkhardt
• Subject Area: Plant Cultivation, Plant Nutrition, Agricultural Technology ; Ecology and Biodiversity of Plants and Ecosystems ; Atmospheric Science
• Term: from 2011 to 2018
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 193519114

The „hydraulic activation of stomata“ (HAS) describes the establishment of continuous liquid water connections along stomatal walls, which affects individual stomata. It enables the efficient bidirectional transport of water, solutes, and hydraulic signals between the leaf interior and leaf surface and makes stomatal transpiration partly independent of stomatal aperture. While in our earlier work we postulated the existence of these connections and contributed substantially to their final approval, this research proposal focusses on the fundamental significance of HAS for the water and nutrient relations of plants, for atmosphere/plant interaction, and for the modelling of gas exchange. The planned experimental investigations aim to describe HAS formation by hygroscopic salts, to examine new concepts of the plant humidity sensor, nocturnal transpiration, stomatal water uptake, and the “extended apoplast”, as well as the significance of epicuticular waxes for atmospheric particle capture. Together, this should lead both to the further development of new theoretical concepts describing plant adaptations to aerosol regimes, and to practical applications in foliar fertilization, plant protection, and improvement of salt stress tolerance.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Participating Person: Privatdozent Dr. Mauricio Hunsche