Atmospheric CO(2) Concentration and N Availability Affect the Balance of the Two Photosystems in Mature Leaves of Rice Plants Grown at a Free-Air CO(2) Enrichment Site

Atmospheric CO(2) concentration ([CO(2)]) has been substantially increasing. Responses of leaf photosynthesis to elevated [CO(2)] have been intensively investigated because leaf photosynthesis is one of the most important determinants of crop yield. The responses of photosynthesis to elevated [CO(2)] can depend on nitrogen (N) availability. Here, we aimed to investigate the significance of the appropriate balance between two photosystems [photosystem I (PSI) and photosystem II (PSII)] under various [CO(2)] and N levels, and thus to clarify if responses of photosynthetic electron transport rates (ETRs) of the two photosystems to elevated [CO(2)] are altered by N availability. Thus, we examined parameters of the two photosystems in mature leaves of rice plants grown under two [CO(2)] levels (ambient and 200 μmol mol(–1) above ambient) and three N fertilization levels at the Tsukuba free-air CO(2) enrichment experimental facility in Japan. Responses of ETR of PSII (ETRII) and ETR of PSI (ETRI) to [CO(2)] levels differed among N levels. When moderate levels of N were applied (MN), ETRI was higher under elevated [CO(2)], whereas at high levels of N were applied (HN), both ETRII and ETRI were lower under elevated [CO(2)] compared with ambient [CO(2)]. Under HN, the decreases in ETRII and ETRI under elevated [CO(2)] were due to increases in the non-photochemical quenching of PSII [Y(NPQ)] and the donor side limitation of PSI [Y(ND)], respectively. The relationship between the effective quantum yields of PSI [Y(I)] and PSII [Y(II)] changed under elevated [CO(2)] and low levels of N (LN). Under both conditions, the ratio of Y(I) to Y(II) was higher than under other conditions. The elevated [CO(2)] and low N changed the balance of the two photosystems. This change may be important because it can induce the cyclic electron flow around PSI, leading to induction of non-photochemical quenching to avoid photoinhibition.