New developments in research on heartwood formation in trees from the perspective of senescence

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 20K21327
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Research (Exploratory)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Medium-sized Section 40:Forestry and forest products science, applied aquatic science, and related fields
• Research Institution: Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology
• Principal Investigator: Nakaba Satoshi 東京農工大学, (連合)農学研究科(研究院), 准教授 (40627709)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 安江 恒 信州大学, 学術研究院農学系, 准教授 (00324236)
• Project Period (FY): 2020-07-30 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: 放射柔細胞 / 細胞老化 / 心材形成 / スギ

Outline of Final Research Achievements

In the first half of this research period, as a preparatory stage for the analysis, the changes in the radial direction of the organelles of ray parenchyma cells in the sapwood of a Sugi tree were analysed by the section SEM observation method, and the changes in the organelles in the sapwood were clarified. In 2023, the survival rate of ray parenchyma cells was analysed with a focus on the rate of radial growth. We found that relatively slower growing individuals might be retain their survival rate and starch storage function closer to the sapwood-heartwood boundary than faster growing individuals. Although we were unable to extract changes related with senescence in ray parenchyma cells, we obtained new insights into the regulatory mechanisms of cell death in ray parenchyma cells.

Free Research Field

樹木細胞生物学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

再生可能資源の中でも木質バイオマスは、カーボンニュートラルという優れた特性を有していることから、循環型炭素資源として期待されている。樹木特有の長命細胞である放射柔細胞の細胞死の制御機構を明らかにすることは、木質バイオマスの利用において重要な特性である心材の量や質の人為的なコントロールを可能とする。本研究の成果は、心材の特性を制御した高機能性樹木を創出する基盤技術の開発に向けて重要な知見を与え、化石資源に依存しない持続可能な循環型社会を構築する上で必要不可欠な木質バイオマスの高度有効利用の促進に貢献する。