Differences and related physiological mechanisms in effects of ammonium on the invasive plant Xanthium strumarium and its native congener X. sibiricum.

ABSTRACT: Few studies explore the effects of nitrogen forms on exotic plant invasions, and all of them are conducted from the perspective of nitrogen form utilization without considering the effects of ammonium toxicity. The invasive plant Xanthium strumarium prefers to use nitrate, while its native congener X. sibiricum prefers to use ammonium, and the invader is more sensitive to high ammonium based on our preliminary observations. To further reveal the effects of nitrogen forms on invasiveness of X. strumarium, we studied the difference and related physiological mechanisms in sensitivity to ammonium between these species. With increasing ammonium, total biomass, root to shoot ratio and leaf chlorophyll content of X. strumarium decreased, showing ammonium toxicity. For

SUBMITTER: Zhang Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9581188 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature