Decreased phenolic defence in dwarf birch (Betula nana) after warming in subarctic tundra

Sari Stark; M. Väisänen; H. Ylänne; R. Julkunen-Tiitto; F. Martz

doi:10.1007/s00300-015-1758-0

Decreased phenolic defence in dwarf birch (Betula nana) after warming in subarctic tundra

Sari Stark, M. Väisänen, H. Ylänne, R. Julkunen-Tiitto, F. Martz

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

Dwarf birch (Betula nana L.), a dominant deciduous dwarf shrub in many tundra ecosystems, is predicted to increase substantially in abundance due to climate warming. Potential warming-induced changes in the concentrations of phenolic compounds in B. nana leaves could influence the susceptibility of B. nana to environmental stresses; however, only a few studies have investigated the effects of climate warming on the phenolic defence in B. nana. We analysed the responses of phenolic concentrations and amounts in B. nana leaves to factorial treatments of warming and fertilization for 2 years in a subarctic tundra heath. Warming induced a strong decrease in total phenolics, including both flavonols (i.e. quercetin and myricetin derivatives, important defence compounds against oxidative stress) and hydrolysable tannins (HTs, important defence compounds against herbivory). Fertilization exerted weaker effects on phenolic concentrations while significantly increasing the leaf area. Our data indicate that climate warming may decrease the level of phenolic defence in B. nana leaves. Given the important role of these compounds in the plant defence, this phenomenon could potentially increase the susceptibility of B. nana to biotic stresses such as herbivory.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	1993-2005
Journal	Polar Biology
Volume	38
Issue number	12
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-015-1758-0
Publication status	Published - 2015 Dec 1
Externally published	Yes

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
We thank Aarno Niva and Sirkka Aakkonen for helping with field manipulations and Minna Männistö and Lars Ganzert for helping with leaf sampling. We are also grateful to Elina Kaarlejärvi, Sarita Keski-Saari, and three anonymous reviewers for helpful comments on the manuscript. This investigation was funded by Academy of Finland (decision number 218121).

Publisher Copyright:
© 2015, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.

Free keywords

Betula nana
Flavonoids
Global change
Phenolics
Plant defence
Tannin
Tundra

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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10.1007/s00300-015-1758-0

Cite this

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title = "Decreased phenolic defence in dwarf birch (Betula nana) after warming in subarctic tundra",

abstract = "Dwarf birch (Betula nana L.), a dominant deciduous dwarf shrub in many tundra ecosystems, is predicted to increase substantially in abundance due to climate warming. Potential warming-induced changes in the concentrations of phenolic compounds in B. nana leaves could influence the susceptibility of B. nana to environmental stresses; however, only a few studies have investigated the effects of climate warming on the phenolic defence in B. nana. We analysed the responses of phenolic concentrations and amounts in B. nana leaves to factorial treatments of warming and fertilization for 2 years in a subarctic tundra heath. Warming induced a strong decrease in total phenolics, including both flavonols (i.e. quercetin and myricetin derivatives, important defence compounds against oxidative stress) and hydrolysable tannins (HTs, important defence compounds against herbivory). Fertilization exerted weaker effects on phenolic concentrations while significantly increasing the leaf area. Our data indicate that climate warming may decrease the level of phenolic defence in B. nana leaves. Given the important role of these compounds in the plant defence, this phenomenon could potentially increase the susceptibility of B. nana to biotic stresses such as herbivory.",

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author = "Sari Stark and M. V{\"a}is{\"a}nen and H. Yl{\"a}nne and R. Julkunen-Tiitto and F. Martz",

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AU - Martz, F.

N1 - Funding Information: We thank Aarno Niva and Sirkka Aakkonen for helping with field manipulations and Minna Männistö and Lars Ganzert for helping with leaf sampling. We are also grateful to Elina Kaarlejärvi, Sarita Keski-Saari, and three anonymous reviewers for helpful comments on the manuscript. This investigation was funded by Academy of Finland (decision number 218121). Publisher Copyright: © 2015, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.

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N2 - Dwarf birch (Betula nana L.), a dominant deciduous dwarf shrub in many tundra ecosystems, is predicted to increase substantially in abundance due to climate warming. Potential warming-induced changes in the concentrations of phenolic compounds in B. nana leaves could influence the susceptibility of B. nana to environmental stresses; however, only a few studies have investigated the effects of climate warming on the phenolic defence in B. nana. We analysed the responses of phenolic concentrations and amounts in B. nana leaves to factorial treatments of warming and fertilization for 2 years in a subarctic tundra heath. Warming induced a strong decrease in total phenolics, including both flavonols (i.e. quercetin and myricetin derivatives, important defence compounds against oxidative stress) and hydrolysable tannins (HTs, important defence compounds against herbivory). Fertilization exerted weaker effects on phenolic concentrations while significantly increasing the leaf area. Our data indicate that climate warming may decrease the level of phenolic defence in B. nana leaves. Given the important role of these compounds in the plant defence, this phenomenon could potentially increase the susceptibility of B. nana to biotic stresses such as herbivory.

AB - Dwarf birch (Betula nana L.), a dominant deciduous dwarf shrub in many tundra ecosystems, is predicted to increase substantially in abundance due to climate warming. Potential warming-induced changes in the concentrations of phenolic compounds in B. nana leaves could influence the susceptibility of B. nana to environmental stresses; however, only a few studies have investigated the effects of climate warming on the phenolic defence in B. nana. We analysed the responses of phenolic concentrations and amounts in B. nana leaves to factorial treatments of warming and fertilization for 2 years in a subarctic tundra heath. Warming induced a strong decrease in total phenolics, including both flavonols (i.e. quercetin and myricetin derivatives, important defence compounds against oxidative stress) and hydrolysable tannins (HTs, important defence compounds against herbivory). Fertilization exerted weaker effects on phenolic concentrations while significantly increasing the leaf area. Our data indicate that climate warming may decrease the level of phenolic defence in B. nana leaves. Given the important role of these compounds in the plant defence, this phenomenon could potentially increase the susceptibility of B. nana to biotic stresses such as herbivory.

KW - Betula nana

KW - Flavonoids

KW - Global change

KW - Phenolics

KW - Plant defence

KW - Tannin

KW - Tundra

U2 - 10.1007/s00300-015-1758-0

DO - 10.1007/s00300-015-1758-0

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:84948586137

SN - 0722-4060

VL - 38

SP - 1993

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JO - Polar Biology

JF - Polar Biology

IS - 12

ER -

Decreased phenolic defence in dwarf birch (Betula nana) after warming in subarctic tundra

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Free keywords

UN SDGs

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