在自然环境中，往往植株的部分叶片会经历过量强度的光照。近期研究表明，这一“经历”能被过量强度光照射过的叶片和同株其它叶片（系统叶片）所“记忆”，并由此提升或优化了植株叶片对未来出现的病原菌和强光的抗性反应。该现象表征了植物在自然环境中形成的一种独特且重要的环境适应策略。作为代谢的中心环节，线粒体呼吸在这种环境适应策略中的作用不应被忽视却尚未被了解；而更重要的是，植物线粒体交替氧化酶的诸多生理学特性和过量强度光照引发的这种“记忆性”系统抗病和强光适应反应的特点相吻合。因此，交替氧化酶很可能在其中扮演着重要角色。对这一尚未被探索的科学问题的研究不仅能深层次地从呼吸代谢的角度来阐释植物这种独特环境适应策略的内在生理机制，也将从环境变化的自然特点、植物生理的时效性和系统性等新角度来认识线粒体呼吸的行为及功能。同时，这对于强辐射地区植物的环境适应机制和农业中利用光照提高作物抗性等研究也具有重要意义。

In natural environment, sometimes only partial leaves of a plant are exposed to excess light intensity. Recent studies have shown that such an “experience” can be physiologically “memorized” by both the partial leaves that experienced excess light intensity and the other (systemic) leaves of the same plant, and this “memory” is used for enhancement or optimization of the defense responses to future pathogen attack and the acclimatory responses to future high light stress. This phenomenon reflects a distinctive and important acclimation strategy of plants to natural environment, which was also formed in changing natural environment. As center of plant metabolism, mitochondrial respiration should play important but unknown roles in this acclimation strategy to natural environment. More importantly, many physiological features of the alternative oxidase of plant mitochondria appear to fit well the characteristics of this excess-light-triggered “memristive” systemic defense responses to pathogen infection and systemic acclimatory responses to high light. Thus, the alternative oxidase could play important role in this process. The investigation on this possible role of the alternative oxidase would deeply reveal the mechanism for this distinctive and important acclimation strategy of plants to natural environment from the perspective of respiratory metabolism. And, this investigation would also greatly develop new understandings about the behaviors and functions of plant mitochondrial respiration from the perspectives of the characteristic of changing natural environment and the physiological timeliness and systematization of plants. In addition, this investigation would be helpful to the researches on the acclimation mechanism of the plants growing in the intensive radiation region and the researches on how to improve crop resistance to environmental stresses by utilizing light illumination.