An analysis of intertaxa differences in sulfur concentration in angiosperms

Willey, Neil; Wilkins, Janine

Abstract

Understanding the behavior of sulfur (S) in the soil-plant system is important for crop production, for predicting the movement of the radioisotope 35S in the environment, and for investigating the role of S in plant metabolism of xenobiotics. A database of relative mean S concentrations in 121 species of flowering plants was constructed using a Residual Maximum Likelihood (REML) procedure with new experimental data for 76 species and literature data for 57 species, there being 12 species in common. The relative mean S concentrations in plant species were normally distributed and their range greater than previously reported for S concentrations between plant species. There was a significant phylogenetic effect on S concentrations when they were analyzed using a nested ANOVA coded with a recent phylogeny of flowering plants. About 36% of the variance between species was associated with the rank of Order and above. At the rank of Order, S concentrations were Brassicales > Malphigiales > Lamiales > Rosales > Caryophyllales > Malvales > Poales > Fabales > Fagales > Asterales. Experiments to quantify intervarietal differences within Beta vulgaris, Triticum aestivum, and Cicer arietinum revealed that these reached a maximum in B. vulgaris at about 20% of those found at the species level and above. A comparison of relative mean S concentrations with previously reported relative mean concentrations for heavy metals suggested correlations between S and cadmium (Cd), and S and zinc (Zn). The frequency distributions and phylogenetic effects reported here are useful to understanding soil-plant transfer of stable and radioactive S isotopes in agricultural and natural ecosystems and might aid investigations of plant response to xenobiotics. © 2006 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: Oct 1, 2006
• Journal: Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science
• Print ISSN: 1436-8730
• Electronic ISSN: 1522-2624
• Publisher: Wiley-VCH Verlag
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 169
• Issue: 5
• Pages: 717-727
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/jpln.200520590
• Keywords: sulfur and phylogeny, radioactive sulfur, sulfur nutrition, plants and xenobiotics
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/1036478
• Publisher URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jpln.200520590
• Additional Information: Additional Information : Willey was Principal Investigator, wrote the paper and gained funding from the Food Standards Agency for post-doc Wilkins. Willey conceived the notion that phylogenetic effects might be useful to food chain modelling and for understanding concentrations of xenobiotics.