Seed fatty acid composition and physical dormancy in fire-prone ecosystems.

ABSTRACT:

Background and aims

The maintenance of seed banks and timing of germination are fundamental to ensuring population persistence. Physical dormancy (PY) in disturbance-prone environments contributes to these processes via an impermeable seed coat. Dormancy is broken often by heating, which in fire-prone regions is determined by species-specific threshold temperatures. However, the mechanisms by which seeds persist or control dormancy-breaking thresholds in such environments are unclear. We determined whether unsaturated and saturated fatty acids (FAs; within triacylglycerols), common lipids linked to heat-stress resilience, might contribute to seed coat dormancy and overall seed persistence, and whether fire selects for different FA compositions and drives PY function in fire-prone r

SUBMITTER: McInnes SJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12784075 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature