Photoprotective responses to winter stress in evergreen Mediterranean ecosystems

The role of antioxidants and regulation of photosynthesis as photoprotective adaptations of Mediterranean vegetation to winter stress have been studied. These mechanisms are influenced by the degree of environmental stress (studied at different altitudes) and the taxonomic origin of each species. Thus, antioxidant composition was species-dependent, but not apparently affected by altitude; while the reductions in photochemical efficiency, associated with the presence of zeaxanthin and a lower chlorophyll content, were common among species with increasing altitude. Three different strategies to cope with winter stress were observed in Mediterranean evergreens. First, in Buxus sempervirens antioxidant concentration was very high and the photochemical efficiency was much reduced, with a large accumulation of zeaxanthin. Second, in other Mediterranean sclerophylls, reversible reductions of PSII efficiency related to activity of the xanthophyll cycle allowed day to day adaptation of photosynthetic rates. Third, the summer semideciduous Cistus species maintained a high photochemical efficiency and accumulated little antioxidant, and this strategy could be justified by the occurrence two leaf populations with different physiological tolerances to environmental stress.