RESUMEN
Thirty days old rice plants grown under low and moderate light conditions were transferred to full sunlight to observe the extent of photoinhibitory damage and protective mechanism, and the relationship between xanthophyll cycle and non-photochemical quenching (qN) under changing light environment. Control plants (low, moderate and sun grown) exhibited similar Fv/Fm ratio, indicating similar photosynthetic efficiency prior to light stress. On exposure to the high light treatment, low light grown plants exhibited faster and higher degree of photoinhibition compared to moderate and high light grown plants. Moderate and high light grown plants showed relatively less photoinhibition and also showed higher qN, indicating better capacity of energy dissipation. Increase in qN in moderate light and sun grown plants was accompanied by conversion of violaxanthin (V) to antheraxanthin (A) and zeaxanthin (Z) indicating operation of Z-dependent thermal dissipation. Rice plants fed with ascorbate (AsA), a stimulator of the de-epoxidation state of V to Z, showed higher Fv/Fm ratio and qN than the plants fed with dithiothreitol (DTT) an inhibitor of xanthophyll cycle. This indicated that an increased amount of energy reached PS II reaction centre, due to absence of A and Z formation, thereby causing greater damage to photosynthesis in DTT fed rice plants. The present data confirmed the relationship between qN and Z in dissipating the excess light energy, thereby protecting plants against photodamage.
RESUMEN
Thirty-days old rice (Oryza sativa L. cv. Jyothi) plants grown under the greenhouse (150-200 µmol m-2 s-1) or shade (600-800 µmol m-2s-1) were exposed to 7 days of full sunlight and compared with plants grown under direct sunlight (1200-2200 µmol m-2s-1).Transfer of greenhouse and shade plants to full sunlight for a day resulted in a decline in their photosynthetic efficiency (Fv/Fm) and an increase in non-photochemical quenching (qN). The decline in Fv/Fm was much greater in transferred greenhouse plants (33%) as compared to transferred shade-plants (20%). Sun-plants did not show much variation in the Fv/Fm ratio (4%) from their predawn measurements (control). The sun-grown plants showed a higher pool of xanthophyll pigments (violaxanthin + antheraxanthin + zeaxanthin). Transfer of greenhouse and shade-plants to full sunlight resulted in an increase in lutein, Chl a/b ratio, antheraxanthin (A) and zeaxanthin (Z) content. Increase in A and Z was correlated with the increase in the qN. The increase in the A and Z content was due to increase in the activity of violaxanthin de-epoxidase. Greenhouse and shade plants on exposure to sunlight showed an increase in lipid peroxidation (LPO). Prolonged exposure of greenhouse and shade plants up to 7 days resulted in recovery of the Fv/Fm, an increase in Z and A and a decline in the LPO. The study demonstrated that rice plants grown at lower light intensities initially underwent photoinhibitory damage on exposure to full sunlight, but were able to acclimate to the high irradiance by dissipating the excess light through various mechanisms such as an increase in lutein, high Chl a/b ratio and xanthophyll cycle, suggesting use of energy dissipation as a mechanism of protection against high irradiance, but to different extent and to some extent by different processes. The study was unique, as plants were grown and photoinhibited under natural conditions rather than the artificial light, as was the case in most of the studies so far. Results showed better adaptation of high-light grown plants and suggested role for chl a/b ratio and lutein, in addition to xanthophylls cycle in shade plants. Low-light grown plants could also completely adapt to full level of sunlight within 3 days of the treatment and xanthophylls cycle (measured as V, A and Z) and activity of de-epoxidase seemed to be important in this adaptation.