Leaf wax composition and distribution of <i>Tillandsia landbeckii</i> reflects moisture gradient across the hyperarid Atacama Desert

Simple item page
dc.contributor.authorContreras, Sergio
dc.contributor.authorLandahur, Manlio
dc.contributor.authorGarcia, Karla
dc.contributor.authorLatorre, Claudio
dc.contributor.authorReyers, Mark
dc.contributor.authorRethemeyer, Janet
dc.contributor.authorJaeschke, Andrea
dc.date.accessioned2025-01-20T22:01:16Z
dc.date.available2025-01-20T22:01:16Z
dc.date.issued2022
dc.description.abstractIn the hyperarid Atacama Desert, water availability plays a crucial role in allowing plant survival. Along with scant rainfall, marine advective fog frequently occurs along the coastal escarpment fueling isolated mono-specific patches of Tillandsia vegetation. In this study, we investigate the lipid biomarker composition of the bromeliad Tillandsia landbeckii (CAM plant) to assess structural adaptations at the molecular level as a response to extremely arid conditions. We analyzed long-chain n-alkanes and fatty acids in living specimens (n = 59) collected from the main Tillandsia dune ecosystems across a 350 km coastal transect. We found that the leaf wax composition was dominated by n-alkanes with concentrations (total average 160.8 +/- 91.4 mu g/g) up to three times higher than fatty acids (66.7 +/- 40.7 mu g/g), likely as an adaptation to the hyperarid environment. Significant differences were found in leaf wax distribution (Average Chain Length [ACL] and Carbon Preference Index [CPI]) in the northern zone relative to the central and southern zones. We found strong negative correlations between fatty acid CPI and n-alkane ACL with precipitation and surface evaporation pointing at fine-scale adaptations to low moisture availability along the coastal transect. Moreover, our data indicate that the predominance of n-alkanes is reflecting the function of the wax in preventing water loss from the leaves. The hyperarid conditions and good preservation potential of both n-alkanes and fatty acids make them ideal tracers to study late Holocene climate change in the Atacama Desert.
dc.fuente.origenWOS
dc.identifier.doi10.1007/s00606-021-01800-0
dc.identifier.eissn1615-6110
dc.identifier.issn0378-2697
dc.identifier.urihttps://doi.org/10.1007/s00606-021-01800-0
dc.identifier.urihttps://repositorio.uc.cl/handle/11534/93802
dc.identifier.wosidWOS:000739392800001
dc.issue.numero1
dc.language.isoen
dc.revistaPlant systematics and evolution
dc.rightsacceso restringido
dc.subjectAtacama desert
dc.subjectFatty acids
dc.subjectFog ecosystems
dc.subjectLeaf-wax
dc.subjectn-alkanes
dc.subjectTillandsia landbeckii
dc.subject.ods13 Climate Action
dc.subject.ods15 Life on Land
dc.subject.odspa13 Acción por el clima
dc.subject.odspa15 Vida de ecosistemas terrestres
dc.titleLeaf wax composition and distribution of <i>Tillandsia landbeckii</i> reflects moisture gradient across the hyperarid Atacama Desert
dc.typeartículo
dc.volumen308
sipa.indexWOS
sipa.trazabilidadWOS;2025-01-12
Files
Collections
Artículos de revistas