Sophie Y. Dillen

Bud set in poplar – genetic dissection of a complex trait in natural and hybrid populations

• The seasonal timing of growth events is crucial to tree distribution and conservation. The seasonal growth cycle is strongly adapted to the local climate that is changing because of global warming. We studied bud set as one cornerstone of the seasonal growth cycle in an integrative approach. • Bud set was dissected at the phenotypic level into several components, and phenotypic components with most genetic variation were identified. While phenotypic variation resided in the timing of growth cessation, and even so more in the duration from growth cessation to bud set, the timing of growth cessation had a stronger genetic component in both natural and hybrid populations. • Quantitative trait loci (QTL) were identified for the most discriminative phenotypic bud-set components across four poplar pedigrees. The QTL from different pedigrees were recurrently detected in six regions of the poplar genome. • These regions of 1.83-4.25 Mbp in size, containing between 202 and 394 genes, form the basis for further molecular-genetic dissection of bud set.

The Challenge of Lignocellulosic Bioenergy in a Water-Limited World

It is hoped that lignocellulosic sources will provide energy security, offset carbon dioxide enrichment of the atmosphere, and stimulate the development of new economic sectors. However, little is known about the productivity and sustainability of plant cell-wall energy industries. In this study, we used 16 global circulation models to project the global distribution of relative water availability in the coming decades and summarized the available data on the water-use efficiency of tree- and grass-based bioenergy systems. The data on bioenergy water use were extremely limited. Productivity was strongly correlated with water-use efficiency, with C4 grasses having a distinct advantage in this regard. Our analysis of agro climatic drivers of bioenergy productivity suggests that relative water availability will be one of the most important climatic changes to consider in the design of bioenergy systems.

Growth and Physiology

Populus spp. is particularly characterized by fast growth rates and by the potential to adapt to a very wide range of environmental gradients. The vigorous growth performance of Populus can be partly explained by high photosynthetic carbon uptake, efficient leaf area development, production of sylleptic branches, appropriate seasonal coordination of growth through phenological adaptations and regulation by phytohormones. However, the high productivity is inextricably related to high water use which may have serious implications for the economic viability of irrigated Populus plantations. Substantial genetic variation has been demonstrated in growth, water use efficiency and several growth determinants suggesting promising perspectives toward Populus improvement programs.

Genomic regions involved in productivity of two interspecific poplar families in Europe. 1. Stem height, circumference and volume

Interspecific hybrids of Populus species are known for their superior growth. In this study, we examined the effect of the genetic background and contrasting environmental conditions on growth and searched for quantitative trait loci (QTL) affecting growth traits. To this end, two hybrid poplar families resulting from controlled crosses, Populus deltoides ‘S9-2’ × P. nigra ‘Ghoy’ (D × N, 180 F1) and P. deltoides ‘S9-2’ × P. trichocarpa ‘V24’ (D × T, 182 F1), were grown at two contrasting sites, Northern Italy and Central France. At the end of the second growing season, tree dimensions (stem height, circumference, and volume) were assessed. The performances of both families significantly differed within and between sites. Tree volume was significantly larger at the Italian site as compared to the French site. Genotype by environment interactions were significant but low for both families and for all growth traits. Tight correlations among the individual growth traits indicated that there may be a common genetic mechanism with pleiotropic effects on these growth traits. In line with previous studies, linkage groups I, VII, IX, X, XVI, XVII, and XIX appeared to have genomic regions with the largest effects on growth traits. This study revealed that (1) both families have high potential for selection of superior poplar hybrids due to the pronounced heterosis (hybrid vigor) and the large genetic variability in terms of growth and (2) the choice of site is crucial for poplar cultivation.

Is the ranking of poplar genotypes for leaf carbon isotope discrimination stable across sites and years in two different full-sib families?

Introduction Because of its vigorous growth, poplar can play an important role for sustainable production of woody biomass to cover renewable energy needs. Hence, the selection of suitable genotypes has to be based on relevant traits, among which intrinsic water use efficiency (Wi, estimated through leaf carbon isotope discrimination, Δ) may be a key trait. Besides a large genetic variation in Δ among the frequently planted poplar hybrids, the use of Δ in deployment or breeding programmes requires insights in the robustness of the genotype ranking for Δ across environments and years.Methods Two F1 full-sib families of poplar (Populus deltoides × Populus nigra and Populus deltoides × Populus trichocarpa) were grown at two sites in Europe, i.e. northern Italy and central France. For each family, leaf samples from 31 F1 genotypes collected during different field studies were used (1) to assess the effect of genotype, site and year on Δ in leaves, as well as their mutual interactions, and (2) to elucidate the relationships between Δ, leaf morphology and tree dimensions.Results Under the well-watered conditions of our study, a low to moderate genetic variability was observed in the two poplar families. Within-family broad-sense heritability values ranged from 0 to 0.49. The ranking of genotypes for Δ was more stable between years than between sites.Conclusions The study confirmed the occurrence of some degree of genetic variability of Δ in the studied poplar families and the possibility to identify genotypes with low, stable Δ values across years. However, the significant genotype-by-site interactions in our study suggest that selection for larger water use efficiency or lower Δ in these families has to consider specific responses in different environments.

Genomic regions involved in productivity of two interspecific poplar families in Europe. 2. Biomass production and its relationships with tree architecture and phenology

Short-rotation coppice of hybrid poplar is a promising renewable feedstock for biofuel production. Breeding for high biomass in short-rotation coppice has started only recently. Two hybrid poplar families were grown at two sites in Europe and phenotyped for a variety of biomass-related traits (1) to examine the extent of phenotypic and genetic variation in biomass production, ramification, resprouting, and phenology, (2) to search for genomic regions involved in productivity, and (3) to determine the effect of the environment on the expression of these traits. The performance of both families differed within and among sites. A pronounced heterosis was observed in most cases. Moderate to high heritability values were found. Seventeen quantitative trait loci (QTL) for biomass production, 13 for ramification, ten for resprouting, 21 for bud burst, and ten for bud set were identified. Genetic correlations and QTL colocation showed that high wood production was associated with high allocation of wood into branches and with high production of resprouts after coppicing. Correlations and QTL colocation between biomass production and phenology traits were weak. Our study provides valuable information on genomic regions involved in biomass production, ramification, and phenology and on phenotypic and genetic relationships among these three trait categories.

Plasticity of growth and biomass production of an intraspecific Populus alba family grown at three sites across Europe during three growing seasons.

White poplar (Populus alba L.) is a native species in Europe, but its growth potential is largely unknown. The general objectives of our study were to determine the impact of contrasted environment...

Chapter 14:Poplar

Poplar has many advantages as a short-rotation coppice (SRC) crop, i.e. rapid juvenile growth rates, good coppice and resprout ability, and easy vegetative propagation. Further, a large genetic variation available within the genus can be explored in breeding programmes aiming at improving the poplar plant material in terms of yield, wood quality and resistance against disease and insect attacks. Besides, the strong scientific support turned poplar into the “guinea pig” in tree research which recently led – as first for a tree species – to the release of its relatively small genome sequence. Hence, traditional poplar breeding programmes may be further improved by means of molecular genetic techniques, with particular attention to the deployment of poplar in SRC.

On the causes of rising gross ecosystem productivity in a regenerating clearcut environment : leaf area vs. species composition

Clearcutting a forest ecosystem can result in a drastic reduction of stand productivity. Despite the severity of this disturbance type, past studies have found that the productivity of young regenerating stands can quickly rebound, approaching that of mature undisturbed stands within a few years. One of the obvious reasons is increased leaf area (LA) with each year of recovery. However, a less obvious reason may be the variability in species composition and distribution during the natural regeneration process. The purpose of this study was to investigate to what extent the increase in gross ecosystem productivity (GEP), observed during the first 4 years of recovery in a naturally regenerating clearcut stand, was due to (i) an overall expansion of leaf area and (ii) an increase in the canopys photosynthetic capacity stemming from either species compositional shifts or drift in physiological traits within species. We found that the multi-year rise in GEP following harvest was clearly attributed to the expansion of LA rather than a change in vegetation composition. Sizeable changes in the relative abundance of species were masked by remarkably similar leaf physiological attributes for a range of vegetation types present in this early-successional environment. Comparison of upscaled leaf-chamber estimates with eddy-covariance-based estimates of light-response curves revealed a broad consistency in both maximum photosynthetic capacity and quantum yield efficiency. The approaches presented here illustrate how chamber- and ecosystem-scale measurements of gas exchange can be blended with species-level LA data to draw conclusive inferences about changes in ecosystem processes over time in a highly dynamic environment.