The poplars never rest and take advantage of the night to redistribute the liquids inside them so as to resist drought, avoiding drying out. The discovery, published in the journal Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, is due to the research coordinated by the Institute of Life Sciences of the Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies in Pisa and conducted in collaboration with the Research Institute on Terrestrial Ecosystems of the National Research Council ( Cnr-Iret) of Sesto Fiorentino (Florence).
The result could help to find new strategies to combat droughts, which are increasingly widespread at a global level and harmful also in terms of the quality of the wood produced.
"It is fundamental for the future of our forests and crops, on which the very survival of humanity depends, to understand these phenomena of adaptation and, where possible, to know how to improve them to make the plants more resistant", pointed out Luca Sebastiani, who has conducted the research with the Sant'Anna School group composed of Silvia Traversari, Andrea Neri, Alessandra Francini and Alessio Giovannelli and Laura Traversi of the Research Institute on Terrestrial Ecosystems of the National Research Council (Cnr-Iret) of Sesto Fiorentino ( Florence).
"Like all living organisms, even trees - continued Sebastiani - must resist and adapt to the environmental stresses they encounter during their lives. If they fail, the organism is damaged and in extreme cases dies". In the case of poplars, research has shown that these trees do not rest at night, but work to rebalance water reserves thanks to the mineral elements present in the sap. Based on the analysis of the biochemical mechanisms put in place by trees to respond to stress, research has also shown that during the day the increase in soluble sugars in the stem, originating from starch reserves and photosynthesis, plays a crucial role. In this way the foundations are laid to understand the role of molecules capable of guaranteeing the well-being of trees in the event of drought.
