Schneider Hannah M, Lynch Jonathan P
Department of Plant Science, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, United States.
Front Plant Sci. 2020 May 15;11:546. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2020.00546. eCollection 2020.
Root phenotypic plasticity has been proposed as a target for the development of more productive crops in variable environments. However, the plasticity of root anatomical and architectural responses to environmental cues is highly complex, and the consequences of these responses for plant fitness are poorly understood. We propose that root phenotypic plasticity may be beneficial in natural or low-input systems in which the availability of soil resources is spatiotemporally dynamic. Crop ancestors and landraces were selected with multiple stresses, competition, significant root loss and heterogenous resource distribution which favored plasticity in response to resource availability. However, in high-input agroecosystems, the value of phenotypic plasticity is unclear, since human management has removed many of these constraints to root function. Further research is needed to understand the fitness landscape of plastic responses including understanding the value of plasticity in different environments, environmental signals that induce plastic responses, and the genetic architecture of plasticity before it is widely adopted in breeding programs. Phenotypic plasticity has many potential ecological, and physiological benefits, but its costs and adaptive value in high-input agricultural systems is poorly understood and merits further research.
根系表型可塑性已被提议作为在多变环境中培育更高产作物的一个目标。然而，根系解剖结构和形态对环境线索的可塑性反应非常复杂，而且这些反应对植物适应性的影响还知之甚少。我们认为，在土壤资源可用性具有时空动态性的自然或低投入系统中，根系表型可塑性可能是有益的。作物的祖先和地方品种是在多种胁迫、竞争、大量根系损失和异质资源分布的情况下被选择出来的，这有利于对资源可用性做出可塑性反应。然而，在高投入农业生态系统中，表型可塑性的价值尚不清楚，因为人为管理消除了许多对根系功能的限制。在将其广泛应用于育种计划之前，需要进一步研究以了解可塑性反应的适应性情况，包括了解不同环境中可塑性的价值、诱导可塑性反应的环境信号以及可塑性的遗传结构。表型可塑性有许多潜在的生态和生理益处，但其在高投入农业系统中的成本和适应性价值还知之甚少，值得进一步研究。
