Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom - TAIR

The responses of stomata to environmental
signals
Stomata are pores found on the surfaces of plant leaves. They control the uptake
of carbon dioxide for photosynthesis and the loss of water vapour during the
process of transpiration. The aperture of the stomatal pore is governed by the
state of turgor of the two guard cells that surround the stomatal pore. When the
guard cells are fully turgid the pore gapes open allowing gas exchange and
conversely stomatal closure is associated with a loss of turgor. A wide range of
environmental signals control the aperture of the stomatal pore and the number
of stomata that form on the epidermis. This lecture will use examples from light,
carbon dioxide, relative humidity and ABA signalling to illustrate how these
signals bring about alterations in stomatal aperture and development.
32
L07
Thursday 09:00 - 09:30
Environmental Responses
Alistair M Hetherington
School of Biological
Sciences
University of Bristol
Woodland Road
Bristol
BS8 1UG
UK