To date, very little is known about the molecular mechanisms underlying the
acclimation of plants to their habitat. This knowledge is crucial because in
nature, unlike the controlled conditions used in the laboratory, a large number
of different parameters may affect the plant simultaneously. To study the response
of plants to changes in environmental conditions within their ecosystem we study
the evergreen C3 desert legume Retama raetam. We use plants that grow naturally
within an arid dune ecosystem (located along the Israeli-Egyptian border in
Nizzana; see,
http://aerc.es.huji.ac.il/),
and we correlate all of our findings to environmental parameters recorded at
the research site by data loggers. Our analysis includes physiological measurements
of plants in the field and molecular analysis of samples collected from the
field in the lab. Our studies revealed that the R. raetam uses an acclimation
strategy of partial plant dormancy to acclimate to its ecosystem. We cloned
different genes associated with dormancy in this plant, and we are in the process
of studying whether the plasticity observed in the cycles of dormancy and growth
in this plant are crucial for its survival within the harsh desert habitat.
Mittler, R., Merquiol, E., Hallak-Herr, E., Kaplan, A., and Cohen, M. (2001)
Living under a "dormant" canopy: a molecular
acclimation mechanism of the desert plant Retama raetam. Plant J. 25, 407-416.
Pnueli, L., Hallak-Herr, E., Rozenberg, M., Cohen, M., Goloubinoff, P., Kaplan,
A. and Mittler, R. (2002)
Mechanisms of dormancy and drought
tolerance in the desert legume Retama raetam. Plant J. 31, 319-330.
Mittler, R., Merquiol, E., Hallak-Herr, E., Kaplan, A., and Cohen, M. (2002) Seasonal and diurnal variations in gene expression in the desert legume Retama raetam Plant Cell & Environment. 25, 1627-1638.
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