Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW 2109, Australia.
Trends Plant Sci. 2011 Feb;16(2):61-8. doi: 10.1016/j.tplants.2010.10.003. Epub 2010 Nov 5.
Although silicon occurs in all plants, it is an element that is largely overlooked by many plant ecologists and most plant-related research on silicon comes from agronomy, archaeology, palaeontology and biogeochemistry. Plant silicon has many functions, acting biochemically as silicic acid and physically as amorphous silica. It contributes to cell and plant strength and enables plants to respond adaptively to environmental stresses. Consequently, plant silicon can increase plant fitness in many fundamental aspects of ecology, including plant-herbivore interactions, light interception, pathogen resistance and alleviation of abiotic stresses. Here, we provide an ecological perspective to research outcomes from diverse disciplines, showing that silicon is an important element in plant ecology that is worthy of greater attention.
尽管硅存在于所有植物中，但它是一个被许多植物生态学家忽视的元素，大多数与硅相关的植物研究来自农学、考古学、古生物学和生物地球化学。植物硅具有许多功能，在生化上表现为硅酸，在物理上表现为无定形二氧化硅。它有助于细胞和植物的强度，并使植物能够适应环境压力。因此，植物硅可以提高植物在生态学许多基本方面的适应性，包括植物-食草动物相互作用、光捕获、抗病原体和减轻非生物胁迫。在这里，我们从不同学科的研究成果中提供了一个生态视角，表明硅是植物生态学中的一个重要元素，值得更多关注。
