Release of GTP Exchange Factor Mediated Down-Regulation of Abscisic Acid Signal Transduction through ABA-Induced Rapid Degradation of RopGEFs

The phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA) is critical to plant development and stress responses. Abiotic stress triggers an ABA signal transduction cascade, which is comprised of the core components PYL/RCAR ABA receptors, PP2C-type protein phosphatases, and protein kinases. Small GTPases of the ROP/RAC family act as negative regulators of ABA signal transduction. However, the mechanisms by which ABA controls the behavior of ROP/RACs have remained unclear. Here, we show that an Arabidopsis guanine nucleotide exchange factor protein RopGEF1 is rapidly sequestered to intracellular particles in response to ABA. GFP-RopGEF1 is sequestered via the endosome-prevacuolar compartment pathway and is degraded. RopGEF1 directly interacts with several clade A PP2C protein phosphatases, including ABI1. Interestingly, RopGEF1 undergoes constitutive degradation in pp2c quadruple abi1/abi2/hab1/pp2ca mutant plants, revealing that active PP2C protein phosphatases protect and stabilize RopGEF1 from ABA-mediated degradation. Interestingly, ABA-mediated degradation of RopGEF1 also plays an important role in ABA-mediated inhibition of lateral root growth. The presented findings point to a PP2C-RopGEF-ROP/RAC control loop model that is proposed to aid in shutting off ABA signal transduction, to counteract leaky ABA signal transduction caused by "monomeric" PYL/RCAR ABA receptors in the absence of stress, and facilitate signaling in response to ABA.

Reconstitution of CO2 Regulation of SLAC1 Anion Channel and Function of CO2-Permeable PIP2;1 Aquaporin as CARBONIC ANHYDRASE4 Interactor

Dark respiration causes an increase in leaf CO2 concentration (Ci), and the continuing increases in atmospheric [CO2] further increases Ci. Elevated leaf CO2 concentration causes stomatal pores to close. Here, we demonstrate that high intracellular CO2/HCO3 (-) enhances currents mediated by the Arabidopsis thaliana guard cell S-type anion channel SLAC1 upon coexpression of any one of the Arabidopsis protein kinases OST1, CPK6, or CPK23 in Xenopus laevis oocytes. Split-ubiquitin screening identified the PIP2;1 aquaporin as an interactor of the βCA4 carbonic anhydrase, which was confirmed in split luciferase, bimolecular fluorescence complementation, and coimmunoprecipitation experiments. PIP2;1 exhibited CO2 permeability. Mutation of PIP2;1 in planta alone was insufficient to impair CO2- and abscisic acid-induced stomatal closing, likely due to redundancy. Interestingly, coexpression of βCA4 and PIP2;1 with OST1-SLAC1 or CPK6/23-SLAC1 in oocytes enabled extracellular CO2 enhancement of SLAC1 anion channel activity. An inactive PIP2;1 point mutation was identified that abrogated water and CO2 permeability and extracellular CO2 regulation of SLAC1 activity. These findings identify the CO2-permeable PIP2;1 as key interactor of βCA4 and demonstrate functional reconstitution of extracellular CO2 signaling to ion channel regulation upon coexpression of PIP2;1, βCA4, SLAC1, and protein kinases. These data further implicate SLAC1 as a bicarbonate-responsive protein contributing to CO2 regulation of S-type anion channels.

The Transmembrane Region of Guard Cell SLAC1 Channels Perceives CO2 Signals via an ABA-Independent Pathway in Arabidopsis

The guard cell S-type anion channel, SLOW ANION CHANNEL1 (SLAC1), a key component in the control of stomatal movements, is activated in response to CO2 and abscisic acid (ABA). Several amino acids existing in the N-terminal region of SLAC1 are involved in regulating its activity via phosphorylation in the ABA response. However, little is known about sites involved in CO2 signal perception. To dissect sites that are necessary for the stomatal CO2 response, we performed slac1 complementation experiments using transgenic plants expressing truncated SLAC1 proteins. Measurements of gas exchange and stomatal apertures in the truncated transgenic lines in response to CO2 and ABA revealed that sites involved in the stomatal CO2 response exist in the transmembrane region and do not require the SLAC1 N and C termini. CO2 and ABA regulation of S-type anion channel activity in guard cells of the transgenic lines confirmed these results. In vivo site-directed mutagenesis experiments targeted to amino acids within the transmembrane region of SLAC1 raise the possibility that two tyrosine residues exposed on the membrane are involved in the stomatal CO2 response.

OsHKT1;4-mediated Na(+) transport in stems contributes to Na(+) exclusion from leaf blades of rice at the reproductive growth stage upon salt stress

BACKGROUND

Na(+) exclusion from leaf blades is one of the key mechanisms for glycophytes to cope with salinity stress. Certain class I transporters of the high-affinity K(+) transporter (HKT) family have been demonstrated to mediate leaf blade-Na(+) exclusion upon salinity stress via Na(+)-selective transport. Multiple HKT1 transporters are known to function in rice (Oryza sativa). However, the ion transport function of OsHKT1;4 and its contribution to the Na(+) exclusion mechanism in rice remain to be elucidated.

RESULTS

Here, we report results of the functional characterization of the OsHKT1;4 transporter in rice. OsHKT1;4 mediated robust Na(+) transport in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Xenopus laevis oocytes. Electrophysiological experiments demonstrated that OsHKT1;4 shows strong Na(+) selectivity among cations tested, including Li(+), Na(+), K(+), Rb(+), Cs(+), and NH4 (+), in oocytes. A chimeric protein, EGFP-OsHKT1;4, was found to be functional in oocytes and targeted to the plasma membrane of rice protoplasts. The level of OsHKT1;4 transcripts was prominent in leaf sheaths throughout the growth stages. Unexpectedly however, we demonstrate here accumulation of OsHKT1;4 transcripts in the stem including internode II and peduncle in the reproductive growth stage. Moreover, phenotypic analysis of OsHKT1;4 RNAi plants in the vegetative growth stage revealed no profound influence on the growth and ion accumulation in comparison with WT plants upon salinity stress. However, imposition of salinity stress on the RNAi plants in the reproductive growth stage caused significant Na(+) overaccumulation in aerial organs, in particular, leaf blades and sheaths. In addition, (22)Na(+) tracer experiments using peduncles of RNAi and WT plants suggested xylem Na(+) unloading by OsHKT1;4.

CONCLUSIONS

Taken together, our results indicate a newly recognized function of OsHKT1;4 in Na(+) exclusion in stems together with leaf sheaths, thus excluding Na(+) from leaf blades of a japonica rice cultivar in the reproductive growth stage, but the contribution is low when the plants are in the vegetative growth stage.

CO2 Sensing and CO2 Regulation of Stomatal Conductance: Advances and Open Questions

Guard cells form epidermal stomatal gas-exchange valves in plants and regulate the aperture of stomatal pores in response to changes in the carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration ([CO2]) in leaves. Moreover, the development of stomata is repressed by elevated CO2 in diverse plant species. Evidence suggests that plants can sense [CO2] changes via guard cells and via mesophyll tissues in mediating stomatal movements. We review new discoveries and open questions on mechanisms mediating CO2-regulated stomatal movements and CO2 modulation of stomatal development, which together function in the CO2 regulation of stomatal conductance and gas exchange in plants. Research in this area is timely in light of the necessity of selecting and developing crop cultivars that perform better in a shifting climate.

Mechanisms of abscisic acid-mediated control of stomatal aperture

Drought stress triggers an increase in the level of the plant hormone abscisic acid (ABA), which initiates a signaling cascade to close stomata and reduce water loss. Recent studies have revealed that guard cells control cytosolic ABA concentration through the concerted actions of biosynthesis, catabolism as well as transport across membranes. Substantial progress has been made at understanding the molecular mechanisms of how the ABA signaling core module controls the activity of anion channels and thereby stomatal aperture. In this review, we focus on our current mechanistic understanding of ABA signaling in guard cells including the role of the second messenger Ca(2+) as well as crosstalk with biotic stress responses.

The HT1 protein kinase is essential for red light-induced stomatal opening and genetically interacts with OST1 in red light and CO2 -induced stomatal movement responses

The question of whether red light-induced stomatal opening is mediated by a photosynthesis-derived reduction in intercellular [CO2 ] (Ci ) remains controversial and genetic analyses are needed. The Arabidopsis thaliana protein kinase HIGH TEMPERATURE 1 (HT1) is a negative regulator of [CO2 ]-induced stomatal closing and ht1-2 mutant plants do not show stomatal opening to low [CO2 ]. The protein kinase mutant ost1-3 exhibits slowed stomatal responses to CO2 . The functions of HT1 and OPEN STOMATA 1 (OST1) to changes in red, blue light or [CO2 ] were analyzed. For comparison we assayed recessive ca1ca4 carbonic anhydrase double mutant plants, based on their slowed stomatal response to CO2 . Here, we report a strong impairment in ht1 in red light-induced stomatal opening whereas blue light was able to induce stomatal opening. The effects on photosynthetic performance in ht1 were restored when stomatal limitation of CO2 uptake, by control of [Ci ], was eliminated. HT1 was found to interact genetically with OST1 both during red light- and low [CO2 ]-induced stomatal opening. Analyses of ca1ca4 plants suggest that more than a low [Ci ]-dependent pathway may function in red light-induced stomatal opening. These results demonstrate that HT1 is essential for red light-induced stomatal opening and interacts genetically with OST1 during stomatal responses to red light and altered [CO2 ].

Distinct Cellular Locations of Carbonic Anhydrases Mediate Carbon Dioxide Control of Stomatal Movements

Elevated carbon dioxide (CO2) in leaves closes stomatal apertures. Research has shown key functions of the β-carbonic anhydrases (βCA1 and βCA4) in rapid CO2-induced stomatal movements by catalytic transmission of the CO2 signal in guard cells. However, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear, because initial studies indicate that these Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) βCAs are targeted to distinct intracellular compartments upon expression in tobacco (Nicotiana benthamiana) cells. Which cellular location of these enzymes plays a key role in native guard cells in CO2-regulated stomatal movements remains unknown. Here, we express fluorescently tagged CAs in guard cells of ca1ca4 double-mutant plants and show that the specific locations of βCA4 at the plasma membrane and βCA1 in native guard cell chloroplasts each can mediate rapid CO2 control of stomatal movements. Localization and complementation analyses using a mammalian αCAII-yellow fluorescent protein in guard cells further show that cytoplasmic localization is also sufficient to restore CO2 regulation of stomatal conductance. Mathematical modeling of cellular CO2 catalysis suggests that the dynamics of the intracellular HCO3 (-) concentration change in guard cells can be driven by plasma membrane and cytoplasmic localizations of CAs but not as clearly by chloroplast targeting. Moreover, modeling supports the notion that the intracellular HCO3 (-) concentration dynamics in guard cells are a key mechanism in mediating CO2-regulated stomatal movements but that an additional chloroplast role of CAs exists that has yet to be identified.

Identification of Open Stomata1-Interacting Proteins Reveals Interactions with Sucrose Non-fermenting1-Related Protein Kinases2 and with Type 2A Protein Phosphatases That Function in Abscisic Acid Responses

The plant hormone abscisic acid (ABA) controls growth and development and regulates plant water status through an established signaling pathway. In the presence of ABA, pyrabactin resistance/regulatory component of ABA receptor proteins inhibit type 2C protein phosphatases (PP2Cs). This, in turn, enables the activation of Sucrose Nonfermenting1-Related Protein Kinases2 (SnRK2). Open Stomata1 (OST1)/SnRK2.6/SRK2E is a major SnRK2-type protein kinase responsible for mediating ABA responses. Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) expressing an epitope-tagged OST1 in the recessive ost1-3 mutant background was used for the copurification and identification of OST1-interacting proteins after osmotic stress and ABA treatments. These analyses, which were confirmed using bimolecular fluorescence complementation and coimmunoprecipitation, unexpectedly revealed homo- and heteromerization of OST1 with SnRK2.2, SnRK2.3, OST1, and SnRK2.8. Furthermore, several OST1-complexed proteins were identified as type 2A protein phosphatase (PP2A) subunits and as proteins involved in lipid and galactolipid metabolism. More detailed analyses suggested an interaction network between ABA-activated SnRK2-type protein kinases and several PP2A-type protein phosphatase regulatory subunits. pp2a double mutants exhibited a reduced sensitivity to ABA during seed germination and stomatal closure and an enhanced ABA sensitivity in root growth regulation. These analyses add PP2A-type protein phosphatases as another class of protein phosphatases to the interaction network of SnRK2-type protein kinases.

Guard cell photosynthesis is critical for stomatal turgor production, yet does not directly mediate CO2 - and ABA-induced stomatal closing

Stomata mediate gas exchange between the inter-cellular spaces of leaves and the atmosphere. CO2 levels in leaves (Ci) are determined by respiration, photosynthesis, stomatal conductance and atmospheric [CO2 ]. [CO2 ] in leaves mediates stomatal movements. The role of guard cell photosynthesis in stomatal conductance responses is a matter of debate, and genetic approaches are needed. We have generated transgenic Arabidopsis plants that are chlorophyll-deficient in guard cells only, expressing a constitutively active chlorophyllase in a guard cell specific enhancer trap line. Our data show that more than 90% of guard cells were chlorophyll-deficient. Interestingly, approximately 45% of stomata had an unusual, previously not-described, morphology of thin-shaped chlorophyll-less stomata. Nevertheless, stomatal size, stomatal index, plant morphology, and whole-leaf photosynthetic parameters (PSII, qP, qN, FV '/FM' ) were comparable with wild-type plants. Time-resolved intact leaf gas-exchange analyses showed a reduction in stomatal conductance and CO2 -assimilation rates of the transgenic plants. Normalization of CO2 responses showed that stomata of transgenic plants respond to [CO2 ] shifts. Detailed stomatal aperture measurements of normal kidney-shaped stomata, which lack chlorophyll, showed stomatal closing responses to [CO2 ] elevation and abscisic acid (ABA), while thin-shaped stomata were continuously closed. Our present findings show that stomatal movement responses to [CO2 ] and ABA are functional in guard cells that lack chlorophyll. These data suggest that guard cell CO2 and ABA signal transduction are not directly modulated by guard cell photosynthesis/electron transport. Moreover, the finding that chlorophyll-less stomata cause a 'deflated' thin-shaped phenotype, suggests that photosynthesis in guard cells is critical for energization and guard cell turgor production.

Live Cell Imaging with R-GECO1 Sheds Light on flg22- and Chitin-Induced Transient [Ca(2+)]cyt Patterns in Arabidopsis

Intracellular Ca(2+) transients are an integral part of the signaling cascade during pathogen-associated molecular pattern (PAMP)-triggered immunity in plants. Yet, our knowledge about the spatial distribution of PAMP-induced Ca(2+) signals is limited. Investigation of cell- and tissue-specific properties of Ca(2+)-dependent signaling processes requires versatile Ca(2+) reporters that are able to extract spatial information from cellular and subcellular structures, as well as from whole tissues over time periods from seconds to hours. Fluorescence-based reporters cover both a broad spatial and temporal range, which makes them ideally suited to study Ca(2+) signaling in living cells. In this study, we compared two fluorescence-based Ca(2+) sensors: the Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET)-based reporter yellow cameleon NES-YC3.6 and the intensity-based sensor R-GECO1. We demonstrate that R-GECO1 exhibits a significantly increased signal change compared with ratiometric NES-YC3.6 in response to several stimuli. Due to its superior sensitivity, R-GECO1 is able to report flg22- and chitin-induced Ca(2+) signals on a cellular scale, which allowed identification of defined [Ca(2+)]cyt oscillations in epidermal and guard cells in response to the fungal elicitor chitin. Moreover, we discovered that flg22- and chitin-induced Ca(2+) signals in the root initiate from the elongation zone.

Calcium specificity signaling mechanisms in abscisic acid signal transduction in Arabidopsis guard cells

A central question is how specificity in cellular responses to the eukaryotic second messenger Ca(2+) is achieved. Plant guard cells, that form stomatal pores for gas exchange, provide a powerful system for in depth investigation of Ca(2+)-signaling specificity in plants. In intact guard cells, abscisic acid (ABA) enhances (primes) the Ca(2+)-sensitivity of downstream signaling events that result in activation of S-type anion channels during stomatal closure, providing a specificity mechanism in Ca(2+)-signaling. However, the underlying genetic and biochemical mechanisms remain unknown. Here we show impairment of ABA signal transduction in stomata of calcium-dependent protein kinase quadruple mutant plants. Interestingly, protein phosphatase 2Cs prevent non-specific Ca(2+)-signaling. Moreover, we demonstrate an unexpected interdependence of the Ca(2+)-dependent and Ca(2+)-independent ABA-signaling branches and the in planta requirement of simultaneous phosphorylation at two key phosphorylation sites in SLAC1. We identify novel mechanisms ensuring specificity and robustness within stomatal Ca(2+)-signaling on a cellular, genetic, and biochemical level.

Loss of cytosolic phosphoglucose isomerase affects carbohydrate metabolism in leaves and is essential for fertility of Arabidopsis

Carbohydrate metabolism in plants is tightly linked to photosynthesis and is essential for energy and carbon skeleton supply of the entire organism. Thus, the hexose phosphate pools of the cytosol and the chloroplast represent important metabolic resources that are maintained through action of phosphoglucose isomerase (PGI) and phosphoglucose mutase interconverting glucose 6-phosphate, fructose 6-phosphate, and glucose 1-phosphate. Here, we investigated the impact of disrupted cytosolic PGI (cPGI) function on plant viability and metabolism. Overexpressing an artificial microRNA targeted against cPGI (amiR-cpgi) resulted in adult plants with vegetative tissue essentially free of cPGI activity. These plants displayed diminished growth compared with the wild type and accumulated excess starch in chloroplasts but maintained low sucrose content in leaves at the end of the night. Moreover, amiR-cpgi plants exhibited increased nonphotochemical chlorophyll a quenching during photosynthesis. In contrast to amiR-cpgi plants, viable transfer DNA insertion mutants disrupted in cPGI function could only be identified as heterozygous individuals. However, homozygous transfer DNA insertion mutants could be isolated among plants ectopically expressing cPGI. Intriguingly, these plants were only fertile when expression was driven by the ubiquitin10 promoter but sterile when the seed-specific unknown seed protein promoter or the Cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter were employed. These data show that metabolism is apparently able to compensate for missing cPGI activity in adult amiR-cpgi plants and indicate an essential function for cPGI in plant reproduction. Moreover, our data suggest a feedback regulation in amiR-cpgi plants that fine-tunes cytosolic sucrose metabolism with plastidic starch turnover.

Carbonic anhydrases, EPF2 and a novel protease mediate CO2 control of stomatal development

Environmental stimuli, including elevated carbon dioxide levels, regulate stomatal development; however, the key mechanisms mediating the perception and relay of the CO2 signal to the stomatal development machinery remain elusive. To adapt CO2 intake to water loss, plants regulate the development of stomatal gas exchange pores in the aerial epidermis. A diverse range of plant species show a decrease in stomatal density in response to the continuing rise in atmospheric CO2 (ref. 4). To date, one mutant that exhibits deregulation of this CO2-controlled stomatal development response, hic (which is defective in cell-wall wax biosynthesis, ref. 5), has been identified. Here we show that recently isolated Arabidopsis thaliana β-carbonic anhydrase double mutants (ca1 ca4) exhibit an inversion in their response to elevated CO2, showing increased stomatal development at elevated CO2 levels. We characterized the mechanisms mediating this response and identified an extracellular signalling pathway involved in the regulation of CO2-controlled stomatal development by carbonic anhydrases. RNA-seq analyses of transcripts show that the extracellular pro-peptide-encoding gene EPIDERMAL PATTERNING FACTOR 2 (EPF2), but not EPF1 (ref. 9), is induced in wild-type leaves but not in ca1 ca4 mutant leaves at elevated CO2 levels. Moreover, EPF2 is essential for CO2 control of stomatal development. Using cell-wall proteomic analyses and CO2-dependent transcriptomic analyses, we identified a novel CO2-induced extracellular protease, CRSP (CO2 RESPONSE SECRETED PROTEASE), as a mediator of CO2-controlled stomatal development. Our results identify mechanisms and genes that function in the repression of stomatal development in leaves during atmospheric CO2 elevation, including the carbonic-anhydrase-encoding genes CA1 and CA4 and the secreted protease CRSP, which cleaves the pro-peptide EPF2, in turn repressing stomatal development. Elucidation of these mechanisms advances the understanding of how plants perceive and relay the elevated CO2 signal and provides a framework to guide future research into how environmental challenges can modulate gas exchange in plants.

COP1 jointly modulates cytoskeletal processes and electrophysiological responses required for stomatal closure

Reorganization of the cortical microtubule cytoskeleton is critical for guard cell function. Here, we investigate how environmental and hormonal signals cause these rearrangements and find that COP1, a RING-finger-type ubiquitin E3 ligase, is required for degradation of tubulin, likely by the 26S proteasome. This degradation is required for stomatal closing. In addition to regulating the cytoskeleton, we show that cop1 mutation impaired the activity of S-type anion channels, which are critical for stomatal closure. Thus, COP1 is revealed as a potential coordinator of cytoskeletal and electrophysiological activities required for guard cell function.

OPT3 is a component of the iron-signaling network between leaves and roots and misregulation of OPT3 leads to an over-accumulation of cadmium in seeds

Plants and seeds are the main dietary sources of zinc, iron, manganese, and copper, but are also the main entry point for toxic elements such as cadmium into the food chain. We report here that an Arabidopsis oligopeptide transporter mutant, opt3-2, over-accumulates cadmium (Cd) in seeds and roots but, unexpectedly, under-accumulates Cd in leaves. The cadmium distribution in opt3-2 differs from iron, zinc, and manganese, suggesting a metal-specific mechanism for metal partitioning within the plant. The opt3-2 mutant constitutively up-regulates the Fe/Zn/Cd transporter IRT1 and FRO2 in roots, indicative of an iron-deficiency response. No genetic mutants that impair the shoot-to-root signaling of iron status in leaves have been identified. Interestingly, shoot-specific expression of OPT3 rescues the Cd sensitivity and complements the aberrant expression of IRT1 in opt3-2 roots, suggesting that OPT3 is required to relay the iron status from leaves to roots. OPT3 expression was found in the vasculature with preferential expression in the phloem at the plasma membrane. Using radioisotope experiments, we found that mobilization of Fe from leaves is severely affected in opt3-2, suggesting that Fe mobilization out of leaves is required for proper trace-metal homeostasis. When expressed in yeast, OPT3 does not localize to the plasma membrane, precluding the identification of the OPT3 substrate. Our in planta results show that OPT3 is important for leaf phloem-loading of iron and plays a key role regulating Fe, Zn, and Cd distribution within the plant. Furthermore, ferric chelate reductase activity analyses provide evidence that iron is not the sole signal transferred from leaves to roots in leaf iron status signaling.

Plant salt-tolerance mechanisms

Crop performance is severely affected by high salt concentrations in soils. To engineer more salt-tolerant plants it is crucial to unravel the key components of the plant salt-tolerance network. Here we review our understanding of the core salt-tolerance mechanisms in plants. Recent studies have shown that stress sensing and signaling components can play important roles in regulating the plant salinity stress response. We also review key Na+ transport and detoxification pathways and the impact of epigenetic chromatin modifications on salinity tolerance. In addition, we discuss the progress that has been made towards engineering salt tolerance in crops, including marker-assisted selection and gene stacking techniques. We also identify key open questions that remain to be addressed in the future.

Phytochelatin-metal(loid) transport into vacuoles shows different substrate preferences in barley and Arabidopsis

Cadmium (Cd) and arsenic (As) are toxic to all living organisms, including plants and humans. In plants, Cd and As are detoxified by phytochelatins (PCs) and metal(loid)-chelating peptides and by sequestering PC-metal(loid) complexes in vacuoles. Consistent differences have been observed between As and Cd detoxification. Whereas chelation of Cd by PCs is largely sufficient to detoxify Cd, As-PC complexes must be sequestered into vacuoles to be fully detoxified. It is not clear whether this difference in detoxification pathways is ubiquitous among plants or varies across species. Here, we have conducted a PC transport study using vacuoles isolated from Arabidopsis and barley. Arabidopsis vacuoles accumulated low levels of PC2 -Cd, and vesicles from yeast cells expressing either AtABCC1 or AtABCC2 exhibited negligible PC2 -Cd transport activity compared with PC2 -As. In contrast, barley vacuoles readily accumulated comparable levels of PC2 -Cd and PC2 -As. PC transport in barley vacuoles was inhibited by vanadate, but not by ammonium, suggesting the involvement of ABC-type transporters. Interestingly, barley vacuoles exhibited enhanced PC2 transport activity when essential metal ions, such as Zn(II), Cu(II) and Mn(II), were added to the transport assay, suggesting that PCs might contribute to the homeostasis of essential metals and detoxification of non-essential toxic metal(loid)s.

Decreased capacity for sodium export out of Arabidopsis chloroplasts impairs salt tolerance, photosynthesis and plant performance

Salt stress is a widespread phenomenon, limiting plant performance in large areas around the world. Although various types of plant sodium/proton antiporters have been characterized, the physiological function of NHD1 from Arabidopsis thaliana has not been elucidated in detail so far. Here we report that the NHD1-GFP fusion protein localizes to the chloroplast envelope. Heterologous expression of AtNHD1 was sufficient to complement a salt-sensitive Escherichia coli mutant lacking its endogenous sodium/proton exchangers. Transport competence of NHD1 was confirmed using recombinant, highly purified carrier protein reconstituted into proteoliposomes, proving Na(+) /H(+) antiport. In planta NHD1 expression was found to be highest in mature and senescent leaves but was not induced by sodium chloride application. When compared to wild-type controls, nhd1 T-DNA insertion mutants showed decreased biomasses and lower chlorophyll levels after sodium feeding. Interestingly, if grown on sand and supplemented with high sodium chloride, nhd1 mutants exhibited leaf tissue Na(+) levels similar to those of wild-type plants, but the Na(+) content of chloroplasts increased significantly. These high sodium levels in mutant chloroplasts resulted in markedly impaired photosynthetic performance as revealed by a lower quantum yield of photosystem II and increased non-photochemical quenching. Moreover, high Na(+) levels might hamper activity of the plastidic bile acid/sodium symporter family protein 2 (BASS2). The resulting pyruvate deficiency might cause the observed decreased phenylalanine levels in the nhd1 mutants due to lack of precursors.

FRET-based reporters for the direct visualization of abscisic acid concentration changes and distribution in Arabidopsis

Abscisic acid (ABA) is a plant hormone that regulates plant growth and development and mediates abiotic stress responses. Direct cellular monitoring of dynamic ABA concentration changes in response to environmental cues is essential for understanding ABA action. We have developed ABAleons: ABA-specific optogenetic reporters that instantaneously convert the phytohormone-triggered interaction of ABA receptors with PP2C-type phosphatases to send a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) signal in response to ABA. We report the design, engineering and use of ABAleons with ABA affinities in the range of 100–600 nM to map ABA concentration changes in plant tissues with spatial and temporal resolution. High ABAleon expression can partially repress Arabidopsis ABA responses. ABAleons report ABA concentration differences in distinct cell types, ABA concentration increases in response to low humidity and NaCl in guard cells and to NaCl and osmotic stress in roots and ABA transport from the hypocotyl to the shoot and root.

DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.01739.001

Plants are able to respond to detrimental changes in their environment—when, for example, water becomes scarce or the soil becomes too salty—in ways that minimize stress and damage caused by these changes. Hormones are chemicals that trigger the plant’s response under these circumstances.

Abscisic acid is the hormone that regulates how plants respond to drought and salt stress and that controls the plant growth in these conditions. In the past, it was possible to measure the average level of this hormone in a given tissue, but not the level in individual cells in a living plant. Moreover, it was difficult to follow directly how abscisic acid moved between the plant cells, tissues or organs.

Now, Waadt et al. (and independently Jones et al.) have developed tools that can measure the levels of abscisic acid within individual cells in living plants and in real time. The plants were genetically engineered to produce sensor proteins with two properties: they can bind to abscisic acid in a reversible manner, and they contain two ‘tags’ that fluoresce at different wavelengths. Shining light onto the plant at a specific wavelength that is only absorbed by one of the tags actually causes both of the tags on the sensor proteins to fluoresce. However, the sensors fluoresce more at one wavelength when they are bound to abscisic acid, and more at the other wavelength when they are not bound to abscisic acid. Hence, measuring the ratio of these two wavelengths in the light that is given off by the sensor proteins can be used as a measure of the concentration of abscisic acid in a plant cell.

Waadt et al. developed sensor proteins called ‘ABAleons’, and used one of these to analyze the uptake, distribution and movement of abscisic acid in different tissues in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. Changes in the level of abscisic acid could be detected at the level of an individual plant cell, and over time scales of fractions of seconds to hours. ABAleons also revealed that the concentration of abscisic acid in guard cells—specialized cells that help stop the loss of water vapor from a leaf—increases when humidity levels are low, or when salt levels are high. Low water levels, or high salt levels, also slowly increased the concentration of abscisic acid in the roots of the plant. Furthermore, Waadt et al. saw that abscisic acid moved long distances from the base of the stem up into the shoot, and down to the root.

Waadt et al. also report that the ABAleons made plants less responsive to abscisic acid, possibly because binding to the ABAleons reduced the amount of abscisic acid that was available to perform its role as a hormone. The next challenge is to engineer ABAleons that minimize this unwanted side effect, and then go on to use ABAleons to study environmental conditions and proteins involved in plant hormone responses.

DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.01739.002

Protein fragment bimolecular fluorescence complementation analyses for the in vivo study of protein-protein interactions and cellular protein complex localizations

The analyses of protein-protein interactions are crucial for understanding cellular processes including signal transduction, protein trafficking, and movement. Protein fragment complementation assays are based on the reconstitution of protein function when non-active protein fragments are brought together by interacting proteins that were genetically fused to these protein fragments. Bimolecular fluorescence complementation (BiFC) relies on the reconstitution of fluorescent proteins and enables both the analysis of protein-protein interactions and the visualization of protein complex formations in vivo. Transient expression of proteins is a convenient approach to study protein functions in planta or in other organisms and minimizes the need for time-consuming generation of stably expressing transgenic organisms. Here we describe protocols for BiFC analyses in Nicotiana benthamiana and Arabidopsis thaliana leaves transiently transformed by Agrobacterium infiltration. Further, we discuss different BiFC applications and provide examples for proper BiFC analyses in planta.