REDESCUBRIENDO LA PRIMERA MONOGRAFÍA SOBRE LA ANATOMÍA DE LAS PLANTAS- ANATOME PLANTARUM (1675) DE MARCELLO MALPIGHI

Anatome Plantarum de Malpighi (1675) surge como un paso natural en el progreso de la biología de las plantas y en especial de la morfología y la anatomía vegetal. El libro está bien escrito y el lenguaje utilizado es generalmente exacto, salvo las limitaciones impuestas por el nivel del conocimiento en la época de Malpighi. Malpighi trata la planta como un sistema y reconoce que sus órganos trabajan de una manera sinérgica. Muchos de los términos utilizados hoy día en la morfología y anatomía vegetal moderna fueron ya empleados por Malpighi. El autor también introdujo en su obra muchas figuras relevantes para apoyar la información aportada, algunas derivadas de observaciones microscópicas. A pesar de los avances registrados desde entonces su obra debe ser considerada, en general, como una monografía moderna de anatomía de las plantas

Do Halophytes Really Require Salts for Their Growth and Development? An Experimental Approach

Halophytes are salt-tolerant plants found exclusively in habitats with high levels of soil salinity. It is generally assumed that salt stress is the most important limiting factor for plant growth in natural saline environments, and that halophytes have developed specific adaptations to elevated salinity which make them unfitted to grow in the absence of salt, thus explaining their distribution in nature. To address experimentally this question, two halophytic species (Inula crithmoides L. and Plantago crassifolia Forssk.) and a maritime dune species (Medicago marina L.) were grown in the greenhouse for several weeks in different substrates: peat, vegetable garden soil, saline soil and sand from maritime dunes. Measurements of growth parameters number of leaves, plant length, fresh and dry weights showed that all three species grew much better on the salt-free and nutrient-rich substrates, peat and garden soil, than on saline soil and dune sand. These results indicate that salts are not compulsorily required for development of halophytic species, and suggest that limitation of water and nutrients, rather than soil salinity per se, are the most important restrictive factors for plant growth in saline habitats. The distribution of halophytes in nature is probably dependent on their limited ability to compete with glycophytes in non-saline areas, while remaining highly competitive under environmental conditions stressful for non-tolerant species.Acknowledgements This work was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (project CGL2008-00438/BOS), with contribution from the European Regional Development Fund. M.-N.G. acknowledges the support provided by the Romanian POSDRU/89/1.5/S/49944 project ‘Developing the innovation capacity and improving the impact of research through post-doctoral programmes’, and by COST Action FA0901: ‘Putting Halophytes to work-From Genes to Ecosystems’ for his stay in Valencia in the frame of a Short Term Scientific Mission.Peer reviewe

Constitutive and Induced Salt Tolerance Mechanisms and Potential Uses of Limonium Mill. Species

[EN] Limonium is one of the most interesting and biodiverse genera of halophytes, with many species adapted to saline environments. Limonium species have a promising potential as cultivated minor crops as many have ornamental value, or are already used as medicinal plants. Other species are marketed as gourmet food or can be used for decontamination of polluted soils. Design and implementation of specific breeding programmes are needed to fully realise this potential, based on the vast genetic variation and high stress tolerance of wild species within the genus. Most Limonium species are halophytes, but many are also resistant to drought, especially those from the Mediterranean and other arid regions. Such species constitute attractive models for basic research on the mechanisms of stress tolerance, both constitutive and induced. As typical recretohalopyhtes, with excretive salt glands, Limonium species possess remarkable morpho-anatomical traits. Salt tolerance in this genus relies also on ion accumulation in the leaves, the concomitant use of diverse osmolytes for osmotic adjustment, and the activation of efficient antioxidant systems.Work in the authors' laboratories was funded by Generalitat Valenciana, grant AICO/2017/039.González-Orenga, S.; Grigore, M.; Boscaiu, M.; Vicente, O. (2021). Constitutive and Induced Salt Tolerance Mechanisms and Potential Uses of Limonium Mill. Species. Agronomy. 11(3):1-23. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy11030413S12311

Ecological notes in Mediterranean halophytes. Towards an integrative approach

[EN] In this work we try to propose an integrative manner in which halophytes could be ecologically approached. Taking into considerations many factors related to environmental conditions, as well as corresponding adaptations in halophytes, we can obtain a good picture of interrelationships established within a typical ecosystem.Supported by grants from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, with contribution from the European Regional Development Fund (project CGL2008–00438/BOS) to O.V., and from Polytechnic University of Valencia (programme ‘PAID-06–09’) to M. B. M.-N. G. acknowledges the support provided by COST Action FA0901 for his stay in Valencia in the frame of a Short Term Scientific Mission, and by the Romanian POSDRU/89/1.5/S/49944 project “Developing the innovation capacity and improving the impact of research through post-doctoral programmes”.Marius Nicusor, G.; Boscaiu Neagu, MT.; Vicente Meana, Ó. (2011). Ecological notes in Mediterranean halophytes. Towards an integrative approach. Ecological Questions. (14):11-13. https://doi.org/10.12775/v10090-011-0002-yS11131

Seasonal variation in proline contents in several halophytes from a littoral salt marsh in Alicante (SE Spain)

[EN] In the present study, we have investigated spatial and temporal changes in Pro levels in several monocotyledonous and dicotyledonous halophytes growing in a littoral salt marsh located near the city of Alicante (SE Spain).Supported by grants from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, with contribution from the European Regional Development Fund (project CGL2008–00438/BOS) to O.V., and from Polytechnic University of Valencia (programme ‘PAID-06–09’) to M.B. M.-N.G. acknowledges the support provided by COST Action FA0901 for his stay in Valencia in the frame of a Short Term Scientific Mission, and by the Romanian POSDRU/89/1.5/S/49944 project “Developing the innovation capacity and improving the impact of research through post-doctoral programmes”.Marius-Nicusor, G.; Boscaiu Neagu, MT.; Vicente Meana, Ó. (2011). Seasonal variation in proline contents in several halophytes from a littoral salt marsh in Alicante (SE Spain). Ecological Questions. 14:15-16. https://doi.org/10.12775/v10090-011-0003-xS15161

Micromorphology and leaf ecological anatomy of Bassia halophyte species (Amaranthaceae) from Iran

Bassia belongs to the family Chenopodiaceae, which is widely distributed in the world, especially in Irano-Turanian Region. According to the morphological similarities among the species of the genus, ecological implications of structural features were studied. In fact, understanding these relationships is of great importance in natural classification. We have studied the relationships of Bassia species using morphological, anatomical, and micro-morphological methods. The current results indicated that phenotypic plasticity and repetitive patterns were probably due to ecological adaptations, especially in decreasing the leaf surface by changing the inner structure. All species have a Kranz anatomy structure (Kochioid subtype), related to C4 photosynthesis. The changes in cell size increasing the cell membrane thickness, the density of two-vascular systems, the increase of palisade to water storage parenchyma ratio and photosynthetic system. The leaf surface is covered with long highly dense hairs and microechinate ornamentation. Though the adaptation caused some morphological similarities, the variation was seen in other descriptive characteristics such as morphological and anatomical features especially in two synonym species of B. turkestanica and B. pilosa. Information about the similarity species is provided

STRUCTURE OF SALT GLANDS OF PLUMBAGINACEAE. REDISCOVERING OLD FINDINGS OF THE 19th CENTURY: ‘METTENIUS’ OR ‘LICOPOLI’ ORGANS?

Salt (chalk) glands of Plumbaginaceae represent interesting structures involved in the excretion of calcium carbonate outside plants’ organs, especially on leaves surfaces. These chalk-glands, nominated by some authors as ‘Licopoli’ or ‘Mettenius’ organs are also very important from taxonomical point of view. Their structure has been a matter of debate for decades and a historical analysis reveals that there are still some inconsistencies regarding the contributions of earlier botanists in discovering and describing chalk-glands. The present work tries to provide a picture of historical progress recorded in the 19th century related to investigation of these structures, focusing especially on the two important names usually mentioned in relation to them: Mettenius and Licopoli. In this respect, several useful clarifications are made, with emphasis on the role played by the two botanists in the stimulation of research interest for these glands among the generations of botanists to come

Assessment of the relevance of osmolyte biosynthesis for salt tolerance of halophytes under natural conditions

[EN] The study of the mechanisms of response to salt stress is one of the most active research topics in plant biology, not only due to its unquestionable academic interest but also because of its economic implications, since high soil salinity is together with drought one of the major causes of reduction of crop yields worldwide. These studies have shown a series of basic mechanisms of response to abiotic stress, which include, among others, the synthesis and accumulation in the cytoplasm of `compatible solutes or osmolytes', used for osmotic balance and as `osmoprotectants'. Today, there is overwhelming evidence that osmolyte, and especially proline accumulation, represents a general and reliable biochemical marker for salt stress. However, and despite the large amount of data available regarding this response mechanism, our knowledge of the importance of osmolyte biosynthesis for salt tolerance of any given species under natural conditions, is still very limited. This is partly due, in our opinion, to the approaches commonly used in these studies, which rely on experiments performed with salt-sensitive plants (glycophytes) instead of halophytes, plants naturally adapted to high soil salinities under artificial laboratory or greenhouse conditions. In this review, we describe and comment on data supporting these ideas, and point out that extreme caution should be taken when assessing the biological relevance of laboratory results.Work in the UPV laboratories is being funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (project CGL2008-00438/BOS), with contribution from the European Regional Development Fund. M.N.G. acknowledges the support provided by the Romanian POSDRU project "Develoing the innovation capacity and improving the impact of research through post-doctoral programmes", and by COST Action FA0901: "Putting Halophytes to work-From Genes to Ecosystems" for his stay in Valencia in the frame of a Short Term Scientific Mission.Grigore, M.; Boscaiu Neagu, MT.; Vicente Meana, Ó. (2011). Assessment of the relevance of osmolyte biosynthesis for salt tolerance of halophytes under natural conditions. European Journal of Plant Science and Biotechnology. (5):12-19. http://hdl.handle.net/10251/34256S1219

Determination of antioxidant enzymatic activity in several halophytes from Dobrogea area

Halophytes have evolved various mechanisms of adaptations to stress tolerance including an increase of antioxidant enzymes activities. The present study was conducted in order to investigate the activity of some antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase – SOD, catalase – CAT and peroxidase – POD) in several halophytes. For this, four halophytic species were collected during summer of 2012 from two distinct saline areas, located in South-East of Romania (Dobrogea). Species collected from Histria are Plantago maritima and Bassia sedoides; the first mentioned species was collected in various stages of development (vegetative and flowering phases). Species Plantago coronopus, Spergularia media, Limonium gmelini, and Bassia sedoides from Sulina were collected from two different habitats: littoral area and an habitat located at 1000 m from littoral. The results show that halophytes collected from 1000 m to littoral area were characterized by higher levels of SOD activity than those collected from littoral. The peroxidase activity in halophytes collected from Sulina show various responses according to species and collecting points. Some of halophytes collected from Histria and Sulina have an undetectable level of catalase activity at the moment of determination; perhaps the role of this enzyme for removing H2O2 has been taken by peroxidase

NON-ENZYMATIC ANTIOXIDANTS CONTENT IN SEVERAL SPECIES COLLECTED FROM SALT MARSHES FROM DOBROGEA

Salt tolerant plants have been the subject of different studies about the mechanisms of salt tolerance at biochemical level. They developed different mechanisms to cope with abiotic stress effects, also by increasing antioxidant activity. Results of this study include polyphenols and flavonoids contents from several species: Plantago lanceolata L., P. coronopus L., P. maritima L. (Plantaginaceae), and Spergularia media (L.) C. Presl (Caryophyllaceae), during vegetative and flowering time. The plant material has been collected from salt marshes located in Dobrogea region (Sulina, Murighiol and Histria). The level of non-enzymatic antioxidant compounds measured in both vegetative and flowering stages in almost all locations generally show higher values for Plantago species compared with Spergularia. Within these compounds, the polyphenols biosynthesis is more noticeable than that of flavonoids. The level of total polyphenols was higher or unchanged in salt tolerant plants during the vegetative phase compared with flowering stage. Contrarily, the flavonoids content was lower during the vegetative phase in P. coronopus, while in P. maritima and Spergularia, flavonoids content was found to be slightly higher than in plants during flowering