Water–Carbon Coupling and Transpirational Regulation in Plants Under Environmental Change

Transpiration and carbon exchange are key aspects of interactions between plants and the environment. Together, they influence plant growth, productivity and the capacity to adapt to environmental conditions. Changes in temperature and precipitation affect water availability, transpirational demand, photosynthesis and respiration, thereby changing the relationship between transpiration and carbon exchange. Differences in growth characteristics, water-use strategies and environmental adaptation among trees, crops and other herbaceous plants may also lead to different water–carbon coupling responses. Although plant water use, photosynthesis, water use efficiency and their environmental responses have been widely studied, findings across vegetation types, environmental conditions and scales still need to be better integrated. In particular, comparative studies are needed to understand coupling patterns and their regulation under the combined effects of temperature and precipitation changes.This Research Topic aims to clarify the coupling between transpiration and carbon exchange in plants under environmental change and the mechanisms regulating this coupling. It covers trees, crops and other herbaceous plants. The focus is on changes in temperature and precipitation and their interactions, while also considering other relevant environmental factors. The topic will examine how water–carbon coupling varies across vegetation types, environmental conditions and spatial scales, and how these variations affect plant productivity, stress tolerance and water use efficiency. By bringing together different types of studies, this topic seeks to improve our understanding of plant water–carbon relations and provide a scientific basis for plant adaptation to environmental change, more efficient water use and sustained productivity.This Research Topic welcomes original research articles, reviews, methods papers and perspective articles on the relationships between transpiration and carbon exchange in trees, crops and other herbaceous plants. Relevant topics include, but are not limited to:- Relationships between transpiration and photosynthetic carbon uptake, respiratory carbon release, and net carbon exchange;- Links between transpiration–carbon exchange coupling and biomass accumulation, plant productivity, water use efficiency and crop yield formation;- Effects of temperature and precipitation changes and their interactions on transpiration–carbon exchange coupling, including warming, drought, altered precipitation patterns and related climate extremes;- Effects of other relevant environmental factors on transpiration–carbon exchange coupling, including their interactions with changes in temperature and precipitation;- Spatial and temporal variation in water–carbon coupling at leaf, plant, canopy, ecosystem, regional and larger scales, and links across these scales;- Studies using experimental observations, long-term monitoring, remote sensing, modelling or multi-source data integration.We particularly welcome studies that reveal coupling mechanisms, compare vegetation types or environmental conditions, and offer new insights into how water use efficiency and carbon uptake can be improved together. Topic editors: Bin Liao, Bo Liu, Ziqiang Liu, Iván Prieto Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/81738/water-carbon-coupling-and-transpirational-regulation-in-plants-under-environmental-change