Hexokinase as a sugar sensor in higher plants

TANG1, Encoding a Symplekin_C Domain-Contained Protein, Influences Sugar Responses in Arabidopsis

Sugars not only serve as energy and cellular carbon skeleton but also function as signaling molecules regulating growth and development in plants. Understanding the molecular mechanisms in sugar signaling pathways will provide more information for improving plant growth and development. Here, we describe a sugar-hypersensitive recessive mutant, tang1. Light-grown tang1 mutants have short roots and increased starch and anthocyanin contents when grown on high-sugar concentration medium. Dark-grown tang1 plants exhibit sugar-hypersensitive hypocotyl elongation and enhanced dark development. The tang1 mutants also show an enhanced response to abscisic acid but reduced response to ethylene. Thus, tang1 displays a range of alterations in sugar signaling-related responses. The TANG1 gene was isolated by a map-based cloning approach and encodes a previously uncharacterized unique protein with a predicted Symplekin tight-junction protein C terminus. Expression analysis indicates that TANG1 is ubiquitously expressed at moderate levels in different organs and throughout the Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) life cycle; however, its expression is not affected by high-sugar treatment. Genetic analysis shows that PRL1 and TANG1 have additive effects on sugar-related responses. Furthermore, the mutation of TANG1 does not affect the expression of genes involved in known sugar signaling pathways. Taken together, these results suggest that TANG1, a unique gene, plays an important role in sugar responses in Arabidopsis.

Genome-wide transcriptomic analysis of the effects of sub-ambient atmospheric oxygen and elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide levels on gametophytes of the moss, Physcomitrella patens

It is widely accepted that atmospheric O2 has played a key role in the development of life on Earth, as evident from the coincidence between the rise of atmospheric O2 concentrations in the Precambrian and biological evolution. Additionally, it has also been suggested that low atmospheric O2 is one of the major drivers for at least two of the five mass-extinction events in the Phanerozoic. At the molecular level, our understanding of the responses of plants to sub-ambient O2 concentrations is largely confined to studies of the responses of underground organs, e.g. roots to hypoxic conditions. Oxygen deprivation often results in elevated CO2 levels, particularly under waterlogged conditions, due to slower gas diffusion in water compared to air. In this study, changes in the transcriptome of gametophytes of the moss Physcomitrella patens arising from exposure to sub-ambient O2 of 13% (oxygen deprivation) and elevated CO2 (1500 ppmV) were examined to further our understanding of the responses of lower plants to changes in atmospheric gaseous composition. Microarray analyses revealed that the expression of a large number of genes was affected under elevated CO2 (814 genes) and sub-ambient O2 conditions (576 genes). Intriguingly, the expression of comparatively fewer numbers of genes (411 genes) was affected under a combination of both sub-ambient O2 and elevated CO2 condition (low O2-high CO2). Overall, the results point towards the effects of atmospheric changes in CO2 and O2 on transcriptional reprogramming, photosynthetic regulation, carbon metabolism, and stress responses.

Variation in primary metabolites in parental and near-isogenic lines of the QTL qDTY12.1 : altered roots and flag leaves but similar spikelets of rice under drought

There is a widespread consensus that drought will mostly affect present and future agriculture negatively. Generating drought-tolerant crops is thus a high priority. However complicated the underlying genetic and regulatory networks for differences in plant performance under stress are, they would be reflected in straightforward differences in primary metabolites. This is because primary metabolites such as amino acids and sugars form the building blocks of all pathways and processes for growth, development, reproduction, and environmental responses. Comparison of such differences was undertaken between the parental line and a near-isogenic line of qDTY12.1 , a QTL for rice yield under drought. The comparison was informative regarding the effect of the QTL in three genetic backgrounds: donor, recipient, and improved recipient, thus illustrating the gene × gene (G × G) interactions. Such a comparison when extended to well-watered and drought conditions illustrated the gene × environment (G × E) interactions. Assessment of such G × G and G × E responses in roots, flag leaves, and spikelets added a yet more informative dimension of tissue-specific responses to drought, mediated by qDTY12.1 . Data on variation in primary metabolites subjected to ANOVA, Tukey's test, Welch's t test, and PCA underscored the importance of the roots and demonstrated concordance between variation in metabolites and morpho-physiological responses to drought. Results suggested that for gainful insights into rice yield under drought, rather than vegetative stage drought tolerance, multiple tissues and genotypes must be assessed at the reproductive stage to avoid misleading conclusions about using particular metabolites or related genes and proteins as candidates or markers for drought tolerance.

Involvement of Arabidopsis Hexokinase1 in Cell Death Mediated by Myo-Inositol Accumulation

Programmed cell death (PCD) is essential for several aspects of plant life, including development and stress responses. We recently identified the mips1 mutant of Arabidopsis thaliana, which is deficient for the enzyme catalyzing the limiting step of myo-inositol (MI) synthesis. One of the most striking features of mips1 is the light-dependent formation of lesions on leaves due to salicylic acid (SA)-dependent PCD. Here, we identified a suppressor of PCD by screening for mutations that abolish the mips1 cell death phenotype. Our screen identified the hxk1 mutant, mutated in the gene encoding the hexokinase1 (HXK1) enzyme that catalyzes sugar phosphorylation and acts as a genuine glucose sensor. We show that HXK1 is required for lesion formation in mips1 due to alterations in MI content, via SA-dependant signaling. Using two catalytically inactive HXK1 mutants, we also show that hexokinase catalytic activity is necessary for the establishment of lesions in mips1. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analyses revealed a restoration of the MI content in mips1 hxk1 that it is due to the activity of the MIPS2 isoform, while MIPS3 is not involved. Our work defines a pathway of HXK1-mediated cell death in plants and demonstrates that two MIPS enzymes act cooperatively under a particular metabolic status, highlighting a novel checkpoint of MI homeostasis in plants.

Stem girdling evidences a trade-off between cambial activity and sprouting and dramatically reduces plant transpiration due to feedback inhibition of photosynthesis and hormone signaling

The photosynthesis source-sink relationship in young Pinus canariensis seedlings was modified by stem girdling to investigate sprouting and cambial activity, feedback inhibition of photosynthesis, and stem and root hydraulic capacity. Removal of bark tissue showed a trade-off between sprouting and diameter growth. Above the girdle, growth was accelerated but the number of sprouts was almost negligible, whereas below the girdle the response was reversed. Girdling resulted in a sharp decrease in whole plant transpiration and root hydraulic conductance. The reduction of leaf area after girdling was strengthened by the high levels of abscisic acid found in buds which pointed to stronger bud dormancy, preventing a new needle flush. Accumulation of sugars in leaves led to a coordinated reduction in net photosynthesis (AN) and stomatal conductance (gS) in the short term, but later (gS below 0.07 mol m(-2) s(-1)) AN decreased faster. The decrease in maximal efficiency of photosystem II (FV/FM) and the operating quantum efficiency of photosystem II (ΦPSII) in girdled plants could suggest photoprotection of leaves, as shown by the vigorous recovery of AN and ΦPSII after reconnection of the phloem. Stem girdling did not affect xylem embolism but increased stem hydraulic conductance above the girdle. This study shows that stem girdling affects not only the carbon balance, but also the water status of the plant.

Sugar regulation of SUGAR TRANSPORTER PROTEIN 1 (STP1) expression in Arabidopsis thaliana

Sugars regulate the expression of many genes at the transcriptional level. In Arabidopsis thaliana, sugars induce or repress the expression of >1800 genes, including the STP1 (SUGAR TRANSPORTER PROTEIN 1) gene, which encodes an H(+)/monosaccharide cotransporter. STP1 transcript levels decrease more rapidly after the addition of low concentrations of sugars than the levels of other repressed genes, such as DIN6 (DARK-INDUCED 6). We found that this regulation is exerted at the transcriptional level and is initiated by phosphorylatable sugars. Interestingly, the sugar signal that modulates STP1 expression is transmitted through a HEXOKINASE 1-independent signalling pathway. Finally, analysis of the STP1 5' regulatory region allowed us to delimit a region of 309bp that contains the cis elements implicated in the glucose regulation of STP1 expression. Putative cis-acting elements involved in this response were identified.

Hexokinase 1 is required for glucose-induced repression of bZIP63, At5g22920, and BT2 in Arabidopsis

Simple sugars, like glucose (Glc) and sucrose (Suc), act as signals to modulate the expression of hundreds of genes in plants. Frequently, however, it remains unclear whether this regulation is induced by the sugars themselves or by their derivatives generated in the course of carbohydrate (CH) metabolism. In the present study, we tested the relevance of different CH metabolism and allocation pathways affecting expression patterns of five selected sugar-responsive genes (bZIP63, At5g22920, BT2, MGD2, and TPS9) in Arabidopsis thaliana. In general, the expression followed diurnal changes in the overall sugar availability. However, under steady growth conditions, this response was hardly impaired in the mutants for CH metabolizing/ transporting proteins (adg1, sex1, sus1-4, sus5/6, and tpt2), including also hexokinase1 (HXK1) loss- and gain-of-function plants-gin2.1 and oe3.2, respectively. In addition, transgenic plants carrying pbZIP63::GUS showed no changes in reporter-gene-expression when grown on sugar under steady-state conditions. In contrast, short-term treatments of agar-grown seedlings with 1% Glc or Suc induced pbZIP63::GUS repression, which became even more apparent in seedlings grown in liquid media. Subsequent analyses of liquid-grown gin2.1 and oe3.2 seedlings revealed that Glc -dependent regulation of the five selected genes was not affected in gin2.1, whereas it was enhanced in oe3.2 plants for bZIP63, At5g22920, and BT2. The sugar treatments had no effect on ATP/ADP ratio, suggesting that changes in gene expression were not linked to cellular energy status. Overall, the data suggest that HXK1 does not act as Glc sensor controlling bZIP63, At5g22920, and BT2 expression, but it is nevertheless required for the production of a downstream metabolic signal regulating their expression.

Genome-scale identification and characterization of moonlighting proteins

BACKGROUND

Moonlighting proteins perform two or more cellular functions, which are selected based on various contexts including the cell type they are expressed, their oligomerization status, and the binding of different ligands at different sites. To understand overall landscape of their functional diversity, it is important to establish methods that can identify moonlighting proteins in a systematic fashion. Here, we have developed a computational framework to find moonlighting proteins on a genome scale and identified multiple proteomic characteristics of these proteins.

RESULTS

First, we analyzed Gene Ontology (GO) annotations of known moonlighting proteins. We found that the GO annotations of moonlighting proteins can be clustered into multiple groups reflecting their diverse functions. Then, by considering the observed GO term separations, we identified 33 novel moonlighting proteins in Escherichia coli and confirmed them by literature review. Next, we analyzed moonlighting proteins in terms of protein-protein interaction, gene expression, phylogenetic profile, and genetic interaction networks. We found that moonlighting proteins physically interact with a higher number of distinct functional classes of proteins than non-moonlighting ones and also found that most of the physically interacting partners of moonlighting proteins share the latter's primary functions. Interestingly, we also found that moonlighting proteins tend to interact with other moonlighting proteins. In terms of gene expression and phylogenetically related proteins, a weak trend was observed that moonlighting proteins interact with more functionally diverse proteins. Structural characteristics of moonlighting proteins, i.e. intrinsic disordered regions and ligand binding sites were also investigated.

CONCLUSION

Additional functions of moonlighting proteins are difficult to identify by experiments and these proteins also pose a significant challenge for computational function annotation. Our method enables identification of novel moonlighting proteins from current functional annotations in public databases. Moreover, we showed that potential moonlighting proteins without sufficient functional annotations can be identified by analyzing available omics-scale data. Our findings open up new possibilities for investigating the multi-functional nature of proteins at the systems level and for exploring the complex functional interplay of proteins in a cell.

REVIEWERS

This article was reviewed by Michael Galperin, Eugine Koonin, and Nick Grishin.

Carbohydrates in plant immunity and plant protection: roles and potential application as foliar sprays

Increasing interest is devoted to carbohydrates for their roles in plant immunity. Some of them are elicitors of plant defenses whereas other ones act as signaling molecules in a manner similar to phytohormones. This review first describes the main classes of carbohydrates associated to plant immunity, their role and mode of action. More precisely, the state of the art about perception of "PAMP, MAMP, and DAMP (Pathogen-, Microbe-, Damage-Associated Molecular Patterns) type" oligosaccharides is presented and examples of induced defense events are provided. A particular attention is paid to the structure/activity relationships of these compounds. The role of sugars as signaling molecules, especially in plant microbe interactions, is also presented. Secondly, the potentialities and limits of foliar sprays of carbohydrates to stimulate plant immunity for crop protection against diseases are discussed, with focus on the roles of the leaf cuticle and phyllosphere microflora.

Induction of secondary metabolite production by UV-C radiation in Vitis vinifera L. Öküzgözü callus cultures

Background

The aim of the present work was to examine the role of UV-C irradiation on the production of secondary metabolites (total phenolic, total flavanols, total flavonols, catechin, ferulic acid and trans-resveratrol in phenolic compounds and α-, β-, γ- δ-tocopherols) in callus cultures. Studies on the effects of UV-C treatment on callus culture are seldom and generally focused on UV-B. However UV-C radiation play an important role in accumule secondary metabolites.

Results

In this study, callus cultures from Öküzgözü grape cultivar were initiated from leaf petiole explants. Calli formed after 6 weeks on the medium supplemented with 0.5 mg L^-1 benzylaminopurine (BA), 0.5 mg L^-1 indole acetic acid (IAA) on B5 media. Callus tissues were exposed to UV-C irradiation at 10, 20 and 30 cm distances from the UV source for 5 and 10 minutes and samples were collected at hours 0, 24 and 48.

Conclusions

The greatest total phenolic content (155.14 mg 100 g^-1) was detected in calli exposed to UV-C for 5 min from 30 cm distance and sampled after 24 h. 24 h and 48 h incubation times, 30 cm and 5 min were the most appropriate combination of UV-C application in total flavanol content. Maximum total flavonol content (7.12 mg 100 g^-1) was obtained on 0 h, 5 min and 20 cm combination. The highest (+)- catechin accumulation (8.89 mg g^-1) was found in calli with 10 min UV-C application from 30 cm distance and sampled after 48 h. Ferulic acid content increased 6 fold in Öküzgözü callus cultures (31.37 μg g^-1) compared to the control group. The greatest trans-resveratrol content (8.43 μg g^-1) was detected in calli exposed to UV-C for 5 min from 30 cm distance and sampled after 24 h. The highest α-tocopherol concentration was found in calli exposed to UV-C for 10 min from 30 cm distance and sampled after 24 h. As a conclusion, it was showed that UV-C radiation had remarkable promoting effects on the accumulation of secondary metabolites in the calli of Öküzgözü grape cultivar.

Glucose control of root growth direction in Arabidopsis thaliana

Directional growth of roots is a complex process that is modulated by various environmental signals. This work shows that presence of glucose (Glc) in the medium also extensively modulated seedling root growth direction. Glc modulation of root growth direction was dramatically enhanced by simultaneous brassinosteroid (BR) application. Glc enhanced BR receptor BRASSINOSTEROID INSENSITIVE1 (BRI1) endocytosis from plasma membrane to early endosomes. Glc-induced root deviation was highly enhanced in a PP2A-defective mutant, roots curl in naphthyl phthalamic acid 1-1 (rcn1-1) suggesting that there is a role of phosphatase in Glc-induced root-growth deviation. RCN1, therefore, acted as a link between Glc and the BR-signalling pathway. Polar auxin transport worked further downstream to BR in controlling Glc-induced root deviation response. Glc also affected other root directional responses such as root waving and coiling leading to altered root architecture. High light intensity mimicked the Glc-induced changes in root architecture that were highly reduced in Glc-signalling mutants. Thus, under natural environmental conditions, changing light flux in the environment may lead to enhanced Glc production/response and is a way to manipulate root architecture for optimized development via integrating several extrinsic and intrinsic signalling cues.

How sugars might coordinate chloroplast and nuclear gene expression during acclimation to high light intensities

The concept of retrograde control of nuclear gene expression assumes the generation of signals inside the chloroplasts, which are either released from or sensed inside of the organelle. In both cases, downstream signaling pathways lead eventually to a differential regulation of nuclear gene expression and the production of proteins required in the chloroplast. This concept appears reasonable as the majority of the over 3000 predicted plastidial proteins are encoded by nuclear genes. Hence, the nucleus needs information on the status of the chloroplasts, such as during acclimation responses, which trigger massive changes in the protein composition of the thylakoid membrane and in the stroma. Here, we propose an additional control mechanism of nuclear- and plastome-encoded photosynthesis genes, taking advantage of pathways involved in sugar- or hormonal signaling. Sugars are major end products of photosynthesis and their contents respond very sensitively to changes in light intensities. Based on recent findings, we ask the question as to whether the carbohydrate status outside the chloroplast can be directly sensed within the chloroplast stroma. Sugars might synchronize the responsiveness of both genomes and thereby help to coordinate the expression of plastome- and nuclear-encoded photosynthesis genes in concert with other, more specific retrograde signals.

Isolation, structural analysis, and expression characteristics of the maize (Zea mays L.) hexokinase gene family

Hexokinases (HXKs, EC 2.7.1.1) play important roles in metabolism, glucose (Glc) signaling, and phosphorylation of Glc and fructose and are ubiquitous in all organisms. Despite their physiological importance, the maize HXK (ZmHXK) genes have not been analyzed systematically. We isolated and characterized nine members of the ZmHXK gene family which were distributed on 3 of the 10 maize chromosomes. A multiple sequence alignment and motif analysis revealed that the maize ZmHXK proteins share three conserved domains. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the ZmHXK family can be divided into four subfamilies. We identified putative cis-elements in the ZmHXK promoter sequences potentially involved in phytohormone and abiotic stress responses, sugar repression, light and circadian rhythm regulation, Ca(2+) responses, seed development and germination, and CO2-responsive transcriptional activation. To study the functions of maize HXK isoforms, we characterized the expression of the ZmHXK5 and ZmHXK6 genes, which are evolutionarily related to the OsHXK5 and OsHXK6 genes from rice. Analysis of tissue-specific expression patterns using quantitative real time-PCR showed that ZmHXK5 was highly expressed in tassels, while ZmHXK6 was expressed in both tassels and leaves. ZmHXK5 and ZmHXK6 expression levels were upregulated by phytohormones and by abiotic stress.

Comparative proteome analysis of the response of ramie under N, P and K deficiency

Ramie is an important natural fiber. There has been little research on the molecular mechanisms of ramie related to the absorption, utilization and metabolism of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K). One approach to reveal the mechanisms of N, P and K (NPK) utilization and metabolism in ramie is comparative proteome analysis. The differentially expressed proteins in the leaves of ramie were analyzed by proteome analysis after 6 days of N- and K-deficient treatments and 3 days of P-deficient treatment using MALDI-TOF/TOF mass spectrometry and 32, 27 and 51 differential proteins were obtained, respectively. These proteins were involved in photosynthesis, protein destination and storage, energy metabolism, primary metabolism, disease/defense, signal transduction, cell structure, transcription, secondary metabolism and protein synthesis. Ramie responded to NPK stress by enhancing secondary metabolism and reducing photosynthesis and energy metabolism to increase endurance. Specifically, ramie adapted to NPK deficiency by increasing signal transduction pathways, enhancing the connection between glycolysis and photosynthesis, promoting the intracellular flow of carbon and N; promoting the synthesis cysteine and related hormones and upregulating actin protein to promote growth of the root system. The experimental results provide important information for further study on the high-efficiency NPK utilization mechanism of ramie.

Involvement of hexokinase1 in plant growth promotion as mediated by Burkholderia phytofirmans

Potato plantlets inoculated with strain PsJN of the bacterium Burkholderia phytofirmans exhibit consistent and significant increases in plant growth under in vitro conditions, when compared with uninoculated plants. The greatest influence on the degree and type of growth enhancement that develops has been shown to be mediated by the sugar concentration in the agar media. Bacterial growth promotion has been suggested in other studies to be regulated by the sugar sensor enzyme hexokinase1, the role of which is activation of glucose phosphorylation. In this present study, we examined the co-relationship between root and stem development in potato plants treated with PsJN and the activity of hexokinase1. Plants grown in the presence of 1.5% and 3% sucrose showed increased levels of hexokinase1 activity only in the roots of inoculated plants, suggesting that the increased enzyme levels may be associated with root growth. Analysis for mRNA using reverse transcriptase did not reveal any significant differences in transcription levels of the gene between inoculated and uninoculated plants. When PsJN-inoculated plants were grown in 1.5% and 3% concentrations of glucose and fructose, stem height and mass, leaf number, root mass, and overall biomass increased. No growth promotion occurred when PsJN-inoculated plants were grown in 3% maltose. Subsequently, a hexokinase1 activity assay showed that PsJN-induced growth of potato plants was found to only occur when plants were grown in the presence of sugars that are recognized by the plant hexokinase1. The results suggest that PsJN may enhance sugar uptake in plants by direct or indirect stimulation of hexokinase1 activity in roots and this results in enhanced overall plant growth.

Master Regulators in Plant Glucose Signaling Networks

The daily life of photosynthetic plants revolves around sugar production, transport, storage and utilization, and the complex sugar metabolic and signaling networks integrate internal regulators and environmental cues to govern and sustain plant growth and survival. Although diverse sugar signals have emerged as pivotal regulators from embryogenesis to senescence, glucose is the most ancient and conserved regulatory signal that controls gene and protein expression, cell-cycle progression, central and secondary metabolism, as well as growth and developmental programs. Glucose signals are perceived and transduced by two principal mechanisms: direct sensing through glucose sensors and indirect sensing via a variety of energy and metabolite sensors. This review focuses on the comparative and functional analyses of three glucose-modulated master regulators in Arabidopsis thaliana, the hexokinase1 (HXK1) glucose sensor, the energy sensor kinases KIN10/KIN11 inactivated by glucose, and the glucose-activated target of rapamycin (TOR) kinase. These regulators are evolutionarily conserved, but have evolved universal and unique regulatory wiring and functions in plants and animals. They form protein complexes with multiple partners as regulators or effectors to serve distinct functions in different subcellular locales and organs, and play integrative and complementary roles from cellular signaling and metabolism to development in the plant glucose signaling networks.

Transcriptome and metabolome analysis of citrus fruit to elucidate puffing disorder

A systems-level analysis reveals details of molecular mechanisms underlying puffing disorder in Citrus fruit. Flavedo, albedo and juice sac tissues of normal fruits and fruits displaying symptoms of puffing disorder were studied using metabolomics at three developmental stages. Microarrays were used to compare normal and puffed fruits for each of the three tissues. A protein-protein interaction network inferred from previous work on Arabidopsis identified hub proteins whose transcripts show significant changes in expression. Glycolysis, the backbone of primary metabolism, appeared to be severely affected by the disorder, based on both transcriptomic and metabolomic results. Significantly less citric acid was observed consistently in puffed fruits. Gene set enrichment analysis suggested that glycolysis and carbohydrate metabolism were significantly altered in puffed samples in both albedo and flavedo. Expression of invertases and genes for sucrose export, amylose-starch and starch-maltose conversion was higher in puffed fruits. These changes may significantly alter source-sink communications. Genes associated with gibberellin and cytokinin signaling were downregulated in symptomatic albedo tissues, suggesting that these hormones play key roles in the disorder. Findings may be applied toward the development of early diagnostic methods based on host response genes and metabolites (i.e. citric acid), and toward therapeutics based on hormones.

Silencing of the tomato sugar partitioning affecting protein (SPA) modifies sink strength through a shift in leaf sugar metabolism

Limitations in our understanding about the mechanisms that underlie source-sink assimilate partitioning are increasingly becoming a major hurdle for crop yield enhancement via metabolic engineering. By means of a comprehensive approach, this work reports the functional characterization of a DnaJ chaperone related-protein (named as SPA; sugar partition-affecting) that is involved in assimilate partitioning in tomato plants. SPA protein was found to be targeted to the chloroplast thylakoid membranes. SPA-RNAi tomato plants produced more and heavier fruits compared with controls, thus resulting in a considerable increment in harvest index. The transgenic plants also displayed increased pigment levels and reduced sucrose, glucose and fructose contents in leaves. Detailed metabolic and enzymatic activities analyses showed that sugar phosphate intermediates were increased while the activity of phosphoglucomutase, sugar kinases and invertases was reduced in the photosynthetic organs of the silenced plants. These changes would be anticipated to promote carbon export from foliar tissues. The combined results suggested that the tomato SPA protein plays an important role in plastid metabolism and mediates the source-sink relationships by affecting the rate of carbon translocation to fruits.

GPT2: a glucose 6-phosphate/phosphate translocator with a novel role in the regulation of sugar signalling during seedling development

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

GPT2, a glucose 6-phosphate/phosphate translocator, plays an important role in environmental sensing in mature leaves of Arabidopsis thaliana. Its expression has also been detected in arabidopsis seeds and seedlings. In order to examine the role of this protein early in development, germination and seedling growth were studied.

METHODS

Germination, greening and establishment of seedlings were monitored in both wild-type Arabidopsis thaliana and in a gpt2 T-DNA insertion knockout line. Seeds were sown on agar plates in the presence or absence of glucose and abscisic acid. Relative expression of GPT2 in seedlings was measured using quantitative PCR.

KEY RESULTS

Plants lacking GPT2 expression were delayed (25-40 %) in seedling establishment, specifically in the process of cotyledon greening (rather than germination). This phenotype could not be rescued by glucose in the growth medium, with greening being hypersensitive to glucose. Germination itself was, however, hyposensitive to glucose in the gpt2 mutant.

CONCLUSIONS

The expression of GPT2 modulates seedling development and plays a crucial role in determining the response of seedlings to exogenous sugars during their establishment. This allows us to conclude that endogenous sugar signals function in controlling germination and the transition from heterotrophic to autotrophic growth, and that the partitioning of glucose 6-phosphate, or related metabolites, between the cytosol and the plastid modulates these developmental responses.

Substantial roles of hexokinase and fructokinase in the effects of sugars on plant physiology and development

The basic requirements for plant growth are light, CO2, water, and minerals. However, the absorption and utilization of each of these requires investment on the part of the plant. The primary products of plants are sugars, and the hexose sugars glucose and fructose are the raw material for most of the metabolic pathways and organic matter in plants. To be metabolized, hexose sugars must first be phosphorylated. Only two families of enzymes capable of catalysing the essential irreversible phosphorylation of glucose and fructose have been identified in plants, hexokinases (HXKs) and fructokinases (FRKs). These hexose-phosphorylating enzymes appear to coordinate sugar production with the abilities to absorb light, CO2, water, and minerals. This review describes the long- and short-term effects mediated by HXK and FRK in various tissues, as well as the role of these enzymes in the coordination of sugar production with the absorption of light, CO2, water, and minerals.

Drying without senescence in resurrection plants

Research into extreme drought tolerance in resurrection plants using species such as Craterostigma plantagineum, C. wilmsii, Xerophyta humilis, Tortula ruralis, and Sporobolus stapfianus has provided some insight into the desiccation tolerance mechanisms utilized by these plants to allow them to persist under extremely adverse environmental conditions. Some of the mechanisms used to ensure cellular preservation during severe dehydration appear to be peculiar to resurrection plants. Apart from the ability to preserve vital cellular components during drying and rehydration, such mechanisms include the ability to down-regulate growth-related metabolism rapidly in response to changes in water availability, and the ability to inhibit dehydration-induced senescence programs enabling reconstitution of photosynthetic capacity quickly following a rainfall event. Extensive research on the molecular mechanism of leaf senescence in non-resurrection plants has revealed a multi-layered regulatory network operates to control programed cell death pathways. However, very little is known about the molecular mechanisms that resurrection plants employ to avoid undergoing drought-related senescence during the desiccation process. To survive desiccation, dehydration in the perennial resurrection grass S. stapfianus must proceed slowly over a period of 7 days or more. Leaves detached from the plant before 60% relative water content (RWC) is attained are desiccation-sensitive indicating that desiccation tolerance is conferred in vegetative tissue of S. stapfianus when the leaf RWC has declined to 60%. Whilst some older leaves remaining attached to the plant during dehydration will senesce, suggesting dehydration-induced senescence may be influenced by leaf age or the rate of dehydration in individual leaves, the majority of leaves do not senesce. Rather these leaves dehydrate to air-dryness and revive fully following rehydration. Hence it seems likely that there are genes expressed in younger leaf tissues of resurrection plants that enable suppression of drought-related senescence pathways. As very few studies have directly addressed this phenomenon, this review aims to discuss current literature surrounding the activation and suppression of senescence pathways and how these pathways may differ in resurrection plants.

Relationship between hexokinase and the aquaporin PIP1 in the regulation of photosynthesis and plant growth

Increased expression of the aquaporin NtAQP1, which is known to function as a plasmalemma channel for CO₂ and water, increases the rate of both photosynthesis and transpiration. In contrast, increased expression of Arabidopsis hexokinase1 (AtHXK1), a dual-function enzyme that mediates sugar sensing, decreases the expression of photosynthetic genes and the rate of transpiration and inhibits growth. Here, we show that AtHXK1 also decreases root and stem hydraulic conductivity and leaf mesophyll CO₂ conductance (g(m)). Due to their opposite effects on plant development and physiology, we examined the relationship between NtAQP1 and AtHXK1 at the whole-plant level using transgenic tomato plants expressing both genes simultaneously. NtAQP1 significantly improved growth and increased the transpiration rates of AtHXK1-expressing plants. Reciprocal grafting experiments indicated that this complementation occurs when both genes are expressed simultaneously in the shoot. Yet, NtAQP1 had only a marginal effect on the hydraulic conductivity of the double-transgenic plants, suggesting that the complementary effect of NtAQP1 is unrelated to shoot water transport. Rather, NtAQP1 significantly increased leaf mesophyll CO₂ conductance and enhanced the rate of photosynthesis, suggesting that NtAQP1 facilitated the growth of the double-transgenic plants by enhancing mesophyll conductance of CO₂.

SIS8, a putative mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase kinase, regulates sugar-resistant seedling development in Arabidopsis

Sugar signaling pathways have been evolutionarily conserved among eukaryotes and are postulated to help regulate plant growth, development and responses to environmental cues. Forward genetic screens have identified sugar signaling or response mutants. Here we report the identification and characterization of Arabidopsis thaliana sugar insensitive8 (sis8) mutants, which display a sugar-resistant seedling development phenotype. Unlike many other sugar insensitive mutants, sis8 mutants exhibit wild-type responses to the inhibitory effects of abscisic acid and paclobutrazol (an inhibitor of gibberellin biosynthesis) on seed germination. Positional cloning of the SIS8 gene revealed that it encodes a putative mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase kinase (MAPKKK; At1g73660). SIS8mRNA is expressed ubiquitously among Arabidopsis organs. A UDP-glucosyltransferase, UGT72E1 (At3g50740), was identified as an interacting partner of SIS8 based on a yeast two-hybrid screen and in planta bimolecular fluorescence complementation. Both SIS8-yellow fluorescent protein (YFP) and UGT72E1-YFP fusion proteins localize to the nucleus when transiently expressed in tobacco leaf cells. T-DNA insertions in At3g50740 cause a sugar-insensitive phenotype. These results indicate that SIS8, a putative MAPKKK, is a regulator of sugar response in Arabidopsis and interacts with a UDP-glucosyltransferase in the nucleus.

Regulation of primary plant metabolism during plant-pathogen interactions and its contribution to plant defense

Plants are constantly exposed to microorganisms in the environment and, as a result, have evolved intricate mechanisms to recognize and defend themselves against potential pathogens. One of these responses is the downregulation of photosynthesis and other processes associated with primary metabolism that are essential for plant growth. It has been suggested that the energy saved by downregulation of primary metabolism is diverted and used for defense responses. However, several studies have shown that upregulation of primary metabolism also occurs during plant-pathogen interactions. We propose that upregulation of primary metabolism modulates signal transduction cascades that lead to plant defense responses. In support of this thought, we here compile evidence from the literature to show that upon exposure to pathogens or elicitors, plants induce several genes associated with primary metabolic pathways, such as those involved in the synthesis or degradation of carbohydrates, amino acids and lipids. In addition, genetic studies have confirmed the involvement of these metabolic pathways in plant defense responses. This review provides a new perspective highlighting the relevance of primary metabolism in regulating plant defense against pathogens with the hope to stimulate further research in this area.

Regulation of primary plant metabolism during plant-pathogen interactions and its contribution to plant defense

Plants are constantly exposed to microorganisms in the environment and, as a result, have evolved intricate mechanisms to recognize and defend themselves against potential pathogens. One of these responses is the downregulation of photosynthesis and other processes associated with primary metabolism that are essential for plant growth. It has been suggested that the energy saved by downregulation of primary metabolism is diverted and used for defense responses. However, several studies have shown that upregulation of primary metabolism also occurs during plant-pathogen interactions. We propose that upregulation of primary metabolism modulates signal transduction cascades that lead to plant defense responses. In support of this thought, we here compile evidence from the literature to show that upon exposure to pathogens or elicitors, plants induce several genes associated with primary metabolic pathways, such as those involved in the synthesis or degradation of carbohydrates, amino acids and lipids. In addition, genetic studies have confirmed the involvement of these metabolic pathways in plant defense responses. This review provides a new perspective highlighting the relevance of primary metabolism in regulating plant defense against pathogens with the hope to stimulate further research in this area.

Overexpression of the vacuolar sugar carrier AtSWEET16 modifies germination, growth, and stress tolerance in Arabidopsis

Here, we report that SUGARS WILL EVENTUALLY BE EXPORTED TRANSPORTER (SWEET16) from Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) is a vacuole-located carrier, transporting glucose (Glc), fructose (Fru), and sucrose (Suc) after heterologous expression in Xenopus laevis oocytes. The SWEET16 gene, similar to the homologs gene SWEET17, is mainly expressed in vascular parenchyma cells. Application of Glc, Fru, or Suc, as well as cold, osmotic stress, or low nitrogen, provoke the down-regulation of SWEET16 messenger RNA accumulation. SWEET16 overexpressors (35SPro:SWEET16) showed a number of peculiarities related to differences in sugar accumulation, such as less Glc, Fru, and Suc at the end of the night. Under cold stress, 35SPro:SWEET16 plants are unable to accumulate Fru, while under nitrogen starvation, both Glc and Fru, but not Suc, were less abundant. These changes of individual sugars indicate that the consequences of an increased SWEET16 activity are dependent upon the type of external stimulus. Remarkably, 35SPro:SWEET16 lines showed improved germination and increased freezing tolerance. The latter observation, in combination with the modified sugar levels, points to a superior function of Glc and Suc for frost tolerance. 35SPro:SWEET16 plants exhibited increased growth efficiency when cultivated on soil and showed improved nitrogen use efficiency when nitrate was sufficiently available, while under conditions of limiting nitrogen, wild-type biomasses were higher than those of 35SPro:SWEET16 plants. Our results identify SWEET16 as a vacuolar sugar facilitator, demonstrate the substantial impact of SWEET16 overexpression on various critical plant traits, and imply that SWEET16 activity must be tightly regulated to allow optimal Arabidopsis development under nonfavorable conditions.

The rare sugar D-allose acts as a triggering molecule of rice defence via ROS generation

Only D-allose, among various rare monosaccharides tested, induced resistance to Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae in susceptible rice leaves with defence responses: reactive oxygen species, lesion mimic formation, and PR-protein gene expression. These responses were suppressed by ascorbic acid or diphenylene iodonium. Transgenic rice plants overexpressing OsrbohC, encoding NADPH oxidase, were enhanced in sensitivity to D-allose. D-Allose-mediated defence responses were suppressed by the presence of a hexokinase inhibitor. 6-Deoxy-D-allose, a structural derivative of D-allose unable to be phosphorylated, did not confer resistance. Transgenic rice plants expressing Escherichia coli AlsK encoding D-allose kinase to increase D-allose 6-phosphate synthesis were more sensitive to D-allose, but E. coli AlsI encoding D-allose 6-phosphate isomerase expression to decrease D-allose 6-phosphate reduced sensitivity. A D-glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase-defective mutant was also less sensitive, and OsG6PDH1 complementation restored full sensitivity. These results reveal that a monosaccharide, D-allose, induces rice resistance to X. oryzae pv. oryzae by activating NADPH oxidase through the activity of D-glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase, initiated by hexokinase-mediated conversion of D-allose to D-allose 6-phosphate, and treatment with D-allose might prove to be useful for reducing disease development in rice.

Involvement of nitrogen and cytokinins in photosynthetic acclimation to elevated CO₂ of spring wheat

Acclimation of photosynthetic capacity to elevated CO₂ involves a decrease of the leaf Rubisco content. In the present study, it was hypothesized that nitrogen uptake and partitioning within the leaf and among different aboveground organs affects the down-regulation of Rubisco. Given the interdependence of nitrogen and cytokinin signals at the whole plant level, it is also proposed that cytokinins affect the nitrogen economy of plants under elevated CO₂, and therefore the acclimatory responses. Spring wheat received varying levels of nitrogen and cytokinin in field chambers with ambient (370 μmol mol⁻¹) or elevated (700 μmol mol⁻¹) atmospheric CO₂. Gas exchange, Rubisco, soluble protein and nitrogen contents were determined in the top three leaves in the canopy, together with total nitrogen contents per shoot. Growth in elevated CO₂ induced decreases in photosynthetic capacity only when nitrogen supply was low. However, the leaf contents of Rubisco, soluble protein and total nitrogen on an area basis declined in elevated CO₂ regardless of nitrogen supply. Total nitrogen in the shoot was no lower in elevated than ambient CO₂, but the fraction of this nitrogen located in flag and penultimate leaves was lower in elevated CO₂. Decreased Rubisco: chlorophyll ratios accompanied losses of leaf Rubisco with CO₂ enrichment. Cytokinin applications increased nitrogen content in all leaves and nitrogen allocation to senescing leaves, but decreased Rubisco contents in flag leaves at anthesis and in all leaves 20 days later, together with the amount of Rubisco relative to soluble protein in all leaves at both growth stages. The results suggest that down regulation of Rubisco in leaves at elevated CO₂ is linked with decreased allocation of nitrogen to the younger leaves and that cytokinins cause a fractional decrease of Rubisco and therefore do not alleviate acclimation to elevated CO₂.

Starch metabolism and antiflorigenic signals modulate the juvenile-to-adult phase transition in Arabidopsis

The physiology and genetics underlying juvenility is poorly understood. Here, we exploit Arabidopsis as a system to understand the mechanisms that regulate floral incompetence during juvenility. Using an experimental assay that allows the length of juvenility to be estimated and mutants impaired in different pathways, we show that multiple inputs influence juvenility. Juvenile phase lengths of wild type (WT) accessions Col-0, Ler-0 and Ws-4 are shown to differ, with Col-0 having the shortest and Ws-4 the longest length. Plants defective in sugar signalling [gin1-1, gin2-1, gin6 (abi4)] and floral repressor mutants [hst1, tfl1, tfl2 (lhp1)] showed shortened juvenile phase lengths compared to their respective WTs. Mutants defective in starch anabolism (adg1-1, pgm1) and catabolism (sex1, sex4, bam3) showed prolonged juvenile phase lengths compared to Col-0. Examination of diurnal metabolite changes in adg1-1 and sex1 mutants indicates that their altered juvenile phase length may be due to lack of starch turnover, which influences carbohydrate availability. In this article, we propose a model in which a variety of signals including floral activators and repressors modulate the juvenile-to-adult phase transition. The role of carbohydrates may be in their capacity as nutrients, osmotic regulators, signalling molecules and/ or through their interaction with phytohormonal networks.

Cross-talk interactions of exogenous nitric oxide and sucrose modulates phenylpropanoid metabolism in yellow lupine embryo axes infected with Fusarium oxysporum

The aim of the study was to examine cross-talk of exogenous nitric oxide (NO) and sucrose in the mechanisms of synthesis and accumulation of isoflavonoids in embryo axes of Lupinus luteus L. cv. Juno. It was verified whether the interaction of these molecules can modulate the defense response of axes to infection and development of the pathogenic fungus Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lupini. Sucrose alone strongly stimulated a high level of genistein glucoside in axes pretreated with exogenous nitric oxide (SNP or GSNO) and non-pretreated axes. As a result of amplification of the signal coming from sucrose and GSNO, high isoflavonoids accumulation was observed (+Sn+GSNO). It needs to be stressed that infection in tissues pretreated with SNP/GSNO and cultured on the medium with sucrose (+Si+SNP/+Si+GSNO) very strongly enhances the accumulation of free isoflavone aglycones. In +Si+SNP axes phenylalanine ammonia-lyase activity was high up to 72h. As early as at 12h in +Si+SNP axes an increase was recorded in gene expression level of the specific isoflavonoid synthesis pathway. At 24h in +Si+SNP axes a very high total antioxidant capacity dependent on the pool of fast antioxidants was noted. Post-infection generation of semiquinone radicals was lower in axes with a high level of sucrose than with a deficit.

Sucrose-induced receptor kinase SIRK1 regulates a plasma membrane aquaporin in Arabidopsis

The transmembrane receptor kinase family is the largest protein kinase family in Arabidopsis, and it contains the highest fraction of proteins with yet uncharacterized functions. Here, we present functions of SIRK1, a receptor kinase that was previously identified with rapid transient phosphorylation after sucrose resupply to sucrose-starved seedlings. SIRK1 was found to be an active kinase with increasing activity in the presence of an external sucrose supply. In sirk1 T-DNA insertional mutants, the sucrose-induced phosphorylation patterns of several membrane proteins were strongly reduced; in particular, pore-gating phosphorylation sites in aquaporins were affected. SIRK1-GFP fusions were found to directly interact with aquaporins in affinity pull-down experiments on microsomal membrane vesicles. Furthermore, protoplast swelling assays of sirk1 mutants and SIRK1-GFP expressing lines confirmed a direct functional interaction of receptor kinase SIRK1 and aquaporins as substrates for phosphorylation. A lack of SIRK1 expression resulted in the failure of mutant protoplasts to control water channel activity upon changes in external sucrose concentrations. We propose that SIRK1 is involved in the regulation of sucrose-specific osmotic responses through direct interaction with and activation of an aquaporin via phosphorylation and that the duration of this response is controlled by phosphorylation-dependent receptor internalization.

Gene expression and biochemical changes of carbohydrate metabolism in in vitro micro-propagated apple plantlets infected by 'Candidatus Phytoplasma mali'

'Candidatus Phytoplasma mali' (Ca. P. mali) is the disease agent causing apple proliferation (AP), which has detrimental effects on production in many apple growing areas of Central and Southern Europe. The present study investigated transcriptional and biochemical changes related to the sugar metabolism as well as expression of pathogenesis-related (PR) protein genes in in vitro micro-propagated AP-infected and healthy control plantlets with the aim of shedding light on host plant response to 'Ca. P. mali' infection. Expression changes between infected and control plantlets were detected by quantitative real-time PCR analysis. The most significant transcriptional changes were observed for genes coding for pathogenesis-related proteins and for heat shock protein 70, as well as for some genes related to the sugar metabolism, such as a sorbitol transporter (SOT5), hexokinase, sucrose-phosphate synthase or granule bound starch synthase. Furthermore, biochemical analyses revealed that infected plantlets were characterized by a significant accumulation of starch and sucrose, while hexoses, such as glucose and fructose, and sorbitol were present at lower concentrations. In summary, the present analysis provides an overview of a gene set that is involved in response to phytoplasma infection and, therefore, it may help for a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in phytoplasma-host plant interaction in apple.

Hexokinase mediates stomatal closure

Stomata, composed of two guard cells, are the gates whose controlled movement allows the plant to balance the demand for CO2 for photosynthesis with the loss of water through transpiration. Increased guard-cell osmolarity leads to the opening of the stomata and decreased osmolarity causes the stomata to close. The role of sugars in the regulation of stomata is not yet clear. In this study, we examined the role of hexokinase (HXK), a sugar-phosphorylating enzyme involved in sugar-sensing, in guard cells and its effect on stomatal aperture. We show here that increased expression of HXK in guard cells accelerates stomatal closure. We further show that this closure is induced by sugar and is mediated by abscisic acid. These findings support the existence of a feedback-inhibition mechanism that is mediated by a product of photosynthesis, namely sucrose. When the rate of sucrose production exceeds the rate at which sucrose is loaded into the phloem, the surplus sucrose is carried toward the stomata by the transpiration stream and stimulates stomatal closure via HXK, thereby preventing the loss of precious water.

Differential anoxic expression of sugar-regulated genes reveals diverse interactions between sugar and anaerobic signaling systems in rice

The interaction between the dual roles of sugar as a metabolic fuel and a regulatory molecule was unveiled by examining the changes in sugar signaling upon oxygen deprivation, which causes the drastic alteration in the cellular energy status. In our study, the expression of anaerobically induced genes is commonly responsive to sugar, either under the control of hexokinase or non-hexokinase mediated signaling cascades. Only sugar regulation via the hexokinase pathway was susceptible for O2 deficiency or energy deficit conditions evoked by uncoupler. Examination of sugar regulation of those genes under anaerobic conditions revealed the presence of multiple paths underlying anaerobic induction of gene expression in rice, subgrouped into three distinct types. The first of these, which was found in type-1 genes, involved neither sugar regulation nor additional anaerobic induction under anoxia, indicating that anoxic induction is a simple result from the release of sugar repression by O2-deficient conditions. In contrast, type-2 genes also showed no sugar regulation, albeit with enhanced expression under anoxia. Lastly, expression of type-3 genes is highly enhanced with sugar regulation sustained under anoxia. Intriguingly, the inhibition of the mitochondrial ATP synthesis can reproduce expression pattern of a specific set of anaerobically induced genes, implying that rice cells may sense O2 deprivation, partly via perception of the perturbed cellular energy status. Our study of interaction between sugar signaling and anaerobic conditions has revealed that sugar signaling and the cellular energy status are likely to communicate with each other and influence anaerobic induction of gene expression in rice.

Mutations in HISTONE ACETYLTRANSFERASE1 affect sugar response and gene expression in Arabidopsis

Nutrient response networks are likely to have been among the first response networks to evolve, as the ability to sense and respond to the levels of available nutrients is critical for all organisms. Although several forward genetic screens have been successful in identifying components of plant sugar-response networks, many components remain to be identified. Toward this end, a reverse genetic screen was conducted in Arabidopsis thaliana to identify additional components of sugar-response networks. This screen was based on the rationale that some of the genes involved in sugar-response networks are likely to be themselves sugar regulated at the steady-state mRNA level and to encode proteins with activities commonly associated with response networks. This rationale was validated by the identification of hac1 mutants that are defective in sugar response. HAC1 encodes a histone acetyltransferase. Histone acetyltransferases increase transcription of specific genes by acetylating histones associated with those genes. Mutations in HAC1 also cause reduced fertility, a moderate degree of resistance to paclobutrazol and altered transcript levels of specific genes. Previous research has shown that hac1 mutants exhibit delayed flowering. The sugar-response and fertility defects of hac1 mutants may be partially explained by decreased expression of AtPV42a and AtPV42b, which are putative components of plant SnRK1 complexes. SnRK1 complexes have been shown to function as central regulators of plant nutrient and energy status. Involvement of a histone acetyltransferase in sugar response provides a possible mechanism whereby nutritional status could exert long-term effects on plant development and metabolism.

Interplay between sucrose and folate modulates auxin signaling in Arabidopsis

As sessile organisms growing in an ever-changing environment, plants must integrate multiple regulatory inputs to promote the appropriate developmental responses. One such nutritional signal is cellular sugar levels, which rise and fall throughout the day and affect a variety of developmental processes. To uncover signaling pathways that modulate sugar perception, compounds from the Library of Active Compounds in Arabidopsis were screened for the ability to perturb developmental responses to sucrose (Suc) in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) seedlings. This screen found that sulfonamides, which inhibit folate biosynthesis in plants, restrict hypocotyl elongation in a sugar-dependent fashion. Transcriptome analysis identified a small set of transcripts that respond to the interaction between sulfonamide and Suc, including a number of transcripts encoding Auxin/Indole-3-Acetic Acids, negative regulators of auxin signal transduction. Chemical inhibition of auxin transport or genetic disruption of auxin signaling relieved this interaction, suggesting that responses to these two nutritional stimuli are mediated by auxin. Reporter systems used to track auxin signaling and distribution showed enhanced activity in the vascular region of the hypocotyl in response to cotreatment of Suc and sulfonamide, yet no change in auxin abundance was observed. Taken together, these findings suggest that the interplay between Suc and folates acts to fine-tune auxin sensitivity and influences auxin distribution during seedling development.

A dual role of tobacco hexokinase 1 in primary metabolism and sugar sensing

Hexokinase (HXK) is present in all virtually living organisms and is central to carbohydrate metabolism catalysing the ATP-dependent phosphorylation of hexoses. In plants, HXKs are supposed to act as sugar sensors and/or to interact with other enzymes directly supplying metabolic pathways such as glycolysis, the nucleotide phosphate monosaccharide (NDP-glucose) pathway and the pentose phosphate pathway. We identified nine members of the tobacco HXK gene family and observed that among RNAi lines of these nine NtHXKs, only RNAi lines of NtHXK1 showed an altered phenotype, namely stunted growth and leaf chlorosis. NtHXK1 was also the isoform with highest relative expression levels among all NtHXKs. GFP-tagging and immunolocalization indicated that NtHXK1 is associated with mitochondrial membranes. Overexpression of NtHXK1 resulted in elevated glucose phosphorylation activity in leaf extracts or chloroplasts. Moreover, NtHXK1 was able to complement the glucose-insensitive Arabidopsis mutant gin2-1 suggesting that NtHXK1 can take over glucose sensing functions. RNAi lines of NtHXK1 showed severely damaged leaf and chloroplast structure, coinciding with an excess accumulation of starch. We conclude that NtHXK1 is not only essential for maintaining glycolytic activity during respiration but also for regulating starch turnover, especially during the night.

Differential responses of CO2 assimilation, carbohydrate allocation and gene expression to NaCl stress in perennial ryegrass with different salt tolerance

Little is known about the effects of NaCl stress on perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) photosynthesis and carbohydrate flux. The objective of this study was to understand the carbohydrate metabolism and identify the gene expression affected by salinity stress. Seventy-four days old seedlings of two perennial ryegrass accessions (salt-sensitive 'PI 538976' and salt-tolerant 'Overdrive') were subjected to three levels of salinity stress for 5 days. Turf quality in all tissues (leaves, stems and roots) of both grass accessions negatively and significantly correlated with GFS (Glu+Fru+Suc) content, except for 'Overdrive' stems. Relative growth rate (RGR) in leaves negatively and significantly correlated with GFS content in 'Overdrive' (P<0.01) and 'PI 538976' (P<0.05) under salt stress. 'Overdrive' had higher CO2 assimilation and Fv/Fm than 'PI 538976'. Intercellular CO2 concentration, however, was higher in 'PI 538976' treated with 400 mM NaCl relative to that with 200 mM NaCl. GFS content negatively and significantly correlated with RGR in 'Overdrive' and 'PI 538976' leaves and in 'PI 538976' stems and roots under salt stress. In leaves, carbohydrate allocation negatively and significantly correlated with RGR (r(2) = 0.83, P<0.01) and turf quality (r(2) = 0.88, P<0.01) in salt-tolerant 'Overdrive', however, the opposite trend for salt-sensitive 'PI 538976' (r(2) = 0.71, P<0.05 for RGR; r(2) = 0.62, P>0.05 for turf quality). A greater up-regulation in the expression of SPS, SS, SI, 6-SFT gene was observed in 'Overdrive' than 'PI 538976'. A higher level of SPS and SS expression in leaves was found in 'PI 538976' relative to 'Overdrive'. Accumulation of hexoses in roots, stems and leaves can induce a feedback repression to photosynthesis in salt-stressed perennial ryegrass and the salt tolerance may be changed with the carbohydrate allocation in leaves and stems.

Transcriptomic analysis of the role of carboxylic acids in metabolite signaling in Arabidopsis leaves

The transcriptional response to metabolites is an important mechanism by which plants integrate information about cellular energy and nutrient status. Although some carboxylic acids have been implicated in the regulation of gene expression for select transcripts, it is unclear whether all carboxylic acids have the same effect, how many transcripts are affected, and how carboxylic acid signaling is integrated with other metabolite signals. In this study, we demonstrate that perturbations in cellular concentrations of citrate, and to a lesser extent malate, have a major impact on nucleus-encoded transcript abundance. Functional categories of transcripts that were targeted by both organic acids included photosynthesis, cell wall, biotic stress, and protein synthesis. Specific functional categories that were only regulated by citrate included tricarboxylic acid cycle, nitrogen metabolism, sulfur metabolism, and DNA synthesis. Further quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis of specific citrate-responsive transcripts demonstrated that the transcript response to citrate is time and concentration dependent and distinct from other organic acids and sugars. Feeding of isocitrate as well as the nonmetabolizable citrate analog tricarballylate revealed that the abundance of selected marker transcripts is responsive to citrate and not downstream metabolites. Interestingly, the transcriptome response to citrate feeding was most similar to those observed after biotic stress treatments and the gibberellin biosynthesis inhibitor paclobutrazol. Feeding of citrate to mutants with defects in plant hormone signaling pathways did not completely abolish the transcript response but hinted at a link with jasmonic acid and gibberellin signaling pathways. Our results suggest that changes in carboxylic acid abundances can be perceived and signaled in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) by as yet unknown signaling pathways.

How do sugars regulate plant growth and development? New insight into the role of trehalose-6-phosphate

Plant growth and development are tightly controlled in response to environmental conditions that influence the availability of photosynthetic carbon in the form of sucrose. Trehalose-6-phosphate (T6P), the precursor of trehalose in the biosynthetic pathway, is an important signaling metabolite that is involved in the regulation of plant growth and development in response to carbon availability. In addition to the plant's own pathway for trehalose synthesis, formation of T6P or trehalose by pathogens can result in the reprogramming of plant metabolism and development. Developmental processes that are regulated by T6P range from embryo development to leaf senescence. Some of these processes are regulated in interaction with phytohormones, such as auxin. A key interacting factor of T6P signaling in response to the environment is the protein kinase sucrose non-fermenting related kinase-1 (SnRK1), whose catalytic activity is inhibited by T6P. SnRK1 is most likely involved in the adjustment of metabolism and growth in response to starvation. The transcription factor bZIP11 has recently been identified as a new player in the T6P/SnRK1 regulatory pathway. By inhibiting SnRK1, T6P promotes biosynthetic reactions. This regulation has important consequences for crop production, for example, in the developing wheat grain and during the growth of potato tubers.

Phytohormones and microRNAs as sensors and regulators of leaf senescence: assigning macro roles to small molecules

Ageing or senescence is an intricate and highly synchronized developmental phase in the life of plant parts including leaf. Senescence not only means death of a plant part, but during this process, different macromolecules undergo degradation and the resulting components are transported to other parts of the plant. During the period from when a leaf is young and green to the stage when it senesces, a multitude of factors such as hormones, environmental factors and senescence associated genes (SAGs) are involved. Plant hormones including salicylic acid, abscisic acid, jasmonic acid and ethylene advance leaf senescence, whereas others like cytokinins, gibberellins, and auxins delay this process. The environmental factors which generally affect plant development and growth, can hasten senescence, the examples being nutrient dearth, water stress, pathogen attack, radiations, high temperature and light intensity, waterlogging, and air, water or soil contamination. Other important influences include carbohydrate accumulation and high carbon/nitrogen level. To date, although several genes involved in this complex process have been identified, still not much information exists in the literature on the signalling mechanism of leaf senescence. Now, the Arabidopsis mutants have paved our way and opened new vistas to elucidate the signalling mechanism of leaf senescence for which various mutants are being utilized. Recent studies demonstrating the role of microRNAs in leaf senescence have reinforced our knowledge of this intricate process. This review provides a comprehensive and critical analysis of the information gained particularly on the roles of several plant growth regulators and microRNAs in regulation of leaf senescence.

Genome-wide association study (GWAS) of resistance to head smut in maize

Head smut, caused by the fungus Sphacelotheca reiliana (Kühn) Clint, is a devastating global disease in maize, leading to severe quality and yield loss each year. The present study is the first to conduct a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of head smut resistance using the Illumina MaizeSNP50 array. Out of 45,868 single nucleotide polymorphisms in a panel of 144 inbred lines, 18 novel candidate genes were associated with head smut resistance in maize. These candidate genes were classified into three groups, namely, resistance genes, disease response genes, and other genes with possible plant disease resistance functions. The data suggested a complicated molecular mechanism of maize resistance against S. reiliana. This study also suggested that GWAS is a useful approach for identifying causal genetic factors for head smut resistance in maize.

Retrograde signaling and photoprotection in a gun4 mutant of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

GUN4 is a regulatory subunit of Mg-chelatase involved in the control of tetrapyrrole synthesis in plants and cyanobacteria. Here, we report the first characterization of a gun4 insertion mutant of the unicellular green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. The mutant contains 50% of chlorophyll as compared to wild-type and accumulates ProtoIX. In contrast to the increase in LHC transcription, the accumulation of most LHC proteins is drastically diminished, implying posttranscriptional down-regulation in the absence of transcriptional coordination. We found that 803 genes change their expression level in gun4 as compared to wild-type, by RNA-Seq, and this wide-ranging effect on transcription is apparent under physiological conditions. Besides LHCs, we identified transcripts encoding enzymes of the tetrapyrrole pathway and factors involved in signal transduction, transcription, and chromatin remodeling. Moreover, we observe perturbations in electron transport with a strongly decreased PSI-to-PSII ratio. This is accompanied by an enhanced activity of the plastid terminal oxidase (PTOX) that could have a physiological role in decreasing photosystem II excitation pressure.

Retrograde signaling and photoprotection in a gun4 mutant of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

GUN4 is a regulatory subunit of Mg-chelatase involved in the control of tetrapyrrole synthesis in plants and cyanobacteria. Here, we report the first characterization of a gun4 insertion mutant of the unicellular green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. The mutant contains 50% of chlorophyll as compared to wild-type and accumulates ProtoIX. In contrast to the increase in LHC transcription, the accumulation of most LHC proteins is drastically diminished, implying posttranscriptional down-regulation in the absence of transcriptional coordination. We found that 803 genes change their expression level in gun4 as compared to wild-type, by RNA-Seq, and this wide-ranging effect on transcription is apparent under physiological conditions. Besides LHCs, we identified transcripts encoding enzymes of the tetrapyrrole pathway and factors involved in signal transduction, transcription, and chromatin remodeling. Moreover, we observe perturbations in electron transport with a strongly decreased PSI-to-PSII ratio. This is accompanied by an enhanced activity of the plastid terminal oxidase (PTOX) that could have a physiological role in decreasing photosystem II excitation pressure.

Hexokinase-mediated sugar signaling controls expression of the calcineurin B-like interacting protein kinase 15 gene and is perturbed by oxidative phosphorylation inhibition

Calcineurin B-like (CBL) interacting protein kinase 15 (CIPK15) is a newly identified positive regulator which is critical to directing the O(2) deficiency signal to the sugar signaling cascade as part of Amy3D (representative Amy3 gene) regulation in rice. It is located upstream and probably contributes to reserve mobilization under anoxia. In isolated starving embryos, the temporal pattern of accumulation of CIPK15 transcripts and leaky suppression of this gene suggests that factors other than CIPK15 may also be involved in the regulation of Amy3D expression. Probing of a variety of sugars and sugar analogs has shown that hexokinase mediates the sugar regulation of CIPK15. For example, hexokinase substrates, such as mannose, 2-deoxyglucose, and other metabolizable sugars, repressed CIPK15 expression, whereas 3-O-methylglucose and 6-deoxyglucose did not. By using glucosamine, a hexokinase inhibitor, to release glucose-dependent CIPK15 suppression, we confirmed that hexokinase mediates regulation of this gene. Chemical inhibitors of mitochondrial electron transfer, proton separation or ATP synthase also effectively abolished sugar-induced repression of CIPK15. This type of interference, the release from glucose-induced repression of gene expression by inhibition of oxidative phosphorylation, was previously identified for the Amy3D gene, which suggests that hexokinase-mediated sugar signaling may be coordinated with the cellular energy status. Analysis of a transgenic rice cell line harboring the GUS reporter gene under the control of the CIPK15 promoter, and transient expression assay for 3' UTR of the CIPK15 gene indicate that sugar regulation of the rice CIPK15 gene is likely mediated by 2548-bp 5'-flanking region, with no additional post-transcriptional control.