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Flores-Iga G, Lopez-Ortiz C, Gracia-Rodriguez C, Almeida A, Nimmakayala P, Reddy UK, Balagurusamy N. A Genome-Wide Identification and Comparative Analysis of the Heavy-Metal-Associated Gene Family in Cucurbitaceae Species and Their Role in Cucurbita pepo under Arsenic Stress. Genes (Basel) 2023; 14:1877. [PMID: 37895226 PMCID: PMC10606463 DOI: 10.3390/genes14101877] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2023] [Revised: 09/21/2023] [Accepted: 09/25/2023] [Indexed: 10/29/2023] Open
Abstract
The heavy-metal-associated (HMA) proteins are a class of PB1-type ATPases related to the intracellular transport and detoxification of metals. However, due to a lack of information regarding the HMA gene family in the Cucurbitaceae family, a comprehensive genome-wide analysis of the HMA family was performed in ten Cucurbitaceae species: Citrullus amarus, Citrullus colocynthis, Citrullus lanatus, Citrullus mucosospermus, Cucumis melo, Cucumis sativus, Cucurbita maxima, Cucurbita moschata, Cucurbita pepo, and Legenaria siceraria. We identified 103 Cucurbit HMA proteins with various members, ranging from 8 (Legenaria siceraria) to 14 (Cucurbita pepo) across species. The phylogenetic and structural analysis confirmed that the Cucurbitaceae HMA protein family could be further classified into two major clades: Zn/Co/Cd/Pb and Cu/Ag. The GO-annotation-based subcellular localization analysis predicted that all HMA gene family members were localized on membranes. Moreover, the analysis of conserved motifs and gene structure (intron/exon) revealed the functional divergence between clades. The interspecies microsynteny analysis demonstrated that maximum orthologous genes were found between species of the Citrullus genera. Finally, nine candidate HMA genes were selected, and their expression analysis was carried out via qRT-PCR in root, leaf, flower, and fruit tissues of C. pepo under arsenic stress. The expression pattern of the CpeHMA genes showed a distinct pattern of expression in root and shoot tissues, with a remarkable expression of CpeHMA6 and CpeHMA3 genes from the Cu/Ag clade. Overall, this study provides insights into the functional analysis of the HMA gene family in Cucurbitaceae species and lays down the basic knowledge to explore the role and mechanism of the HMA gene family to cope with arsenic stress conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gerardo Flores-Iga
- Laboratorio de Biorremediación, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Autónoma de Coahuila, Torreón 27275, Coahuila, México; (G.F.-I.); (C.G.-R.)
- Gus R. Douglass Institute, Department of Biology, West Virginia State University, Institute, WV 25112-1000, USA; (C.L.-O.); (P.N.)
| | - Carlos Lopez-Ortiz
- Gus R. Douglass Institute, Department of Biology, West Virginia State University, Institute, WV 25112-1000, USA; (C.L.-O.); (P.N.)
| | - Celeste Gracia-Rodriguez
- Laboratorio de Biorremediación, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Autónoma de Coahuila, Torreón 27275, Coahuila, México; (G.F.-I.); (C.G.-R.)
- Gus R. Douglass Institute, Department of Biology, West Virginia State University, Institute, WV 25112-1000, USA; (C.L.-O.); (P.N.)
| | - Aldo Almeida
- Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 1871 Frederiksberg, Denmark;
| | - Padma Nimmakayala
- Gus R. Douglass Institute, Department of Biology, West Virginia State University, Institute, WV 25112-1000, USA; (C.L.-O.); (P.N.)
| | - Umesh K. Reddy
- Gus R. Douglass Institute, Department of Biology, West Virginia State University, Institute, WV 25112-1000, USA; (C.L.-O.); (P.N.)
| | - Nagamani Balagurusamy
- Laboratorio de Biorremediación, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Autónoma de Coahuila, Torreón 27275, Coahuila, México; (G.F.-I.); (C.G.-R.)
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De Rosa A, McGaughey S, Magrath I, Byrt C. Molecular membrane separation: plants inspire new technologies. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2023; 238:33-54. [PMID: 36683439 DOI: 10.1111/nph.18762] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2022] [Accepted: 01/06/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Plants draw up their surrounding soil solution to gain water and nutrients required for growth, development and reproduction. Obtaining adequate water and nutrients involves taking up both desired and undesired elements from the soil solution and separating resources from waste. Desirable and undesirable elements in the soil solution can share similar chemical properties, such as size and charge. Plants use membrane separation mechanisms to distinguish between different molecules that have similar chemical properties. Membrane separation enables distribution or retention of resources and efflux or compartmentation of waste. Plants use specialised membrane separation mechanisms to adapt to challenging soil solution compositions and distinguish between resources and waste. Coordination and regulation of these mechanisms between different tissues, cell types and subcellular membranes supports plant nutrition, environmental stress tolerance and energy management. This review considers membrane separation mechanisms in plants that contribute to specialised separation processes and highlights mechanisms of interest for engineering plants with enhanced performance in challenging conditions and for inspiring the development of novel industrial membrane separation technologies. Knowledge gained from studying plant membrane separation mechanisms can be applied to developing precision separation technologies. Separation technologies are needed for harvesting resources from industrial wastes and transitioning to a circular green economy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annamaria De Rosa
- Division of Plant Science, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, 2601, ACT, Acton, Australia
| | - Samantha McGaughey
- Division of Plant Science, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, 2601, ACT, Acton, Australia
| | - Isobel Magrath
- Division of Plant Science, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, 2601, ACT, Acton, Australia
| | - Caitlin Byrt
- Division of Plant Science, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, 2601, ACT, Acton, Australia
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Wege S. Manganese management in plants: Golgi transporter determines manganese allocation and cell wall composition. PLANT PHYSIOLOGY 2022; 190:2077-2079. [PMID: 36124988 PMCID: PMC9706420 DOI: 10.1093/plphys/kiac429] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2022] [Accepted: 08/24/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
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Membrane transporter identification and modulation via adaptive laboratory evolution. Metab Eng 2022; 72:376-390. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ymben.2022.05.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2022] [Accepted: 05/12/2022] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
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Identification of Potential Genes Encoding Protein Transporters in Arabidopsis thaliana Glucosinolate (GSL) Metabolism. Life (Basel) 2022; 12:life12030326. [PMID: 35330077 PMCID: PMC8953324 DOI: 10.3390/life12030326] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2022] [Revised: 02/10/2022] [Accepted: 02/12/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Several species in Brassicaceae produce glucosinolates (GSLs) to protect themselves against pests. As demonstrated in A. thaliana, the reallocation of defence compounds, of which GSLs are a major part, is highly dependent on transport processes and serves to protect high-value tissues such as reproductive tissues. This study aimed to identify potential GSL-transporter proteins (TPs) using a network-biology approach. The known A. thaliana GSL genes were retrieved from the literature and pathway databases and searched against several co-expression databases to generate a gene network consisting of 1267 nodes and 14,308 edges. In addition, 1151 co-expressed genes were annotated, integrated, and visualised using relevant bioinformatic tools. Based on three criteria, 21 potential GSL genes encoding TPs were selected. The AST68 and ABCG40 potential GSL TPs were chosen for further investigation because their subcellular localisation is similar to that of known GSL TPs (SULTR1;1 and SULTR1;2) and ABCG36, respectively. However, AST68 was selected for a molecular-docking analysis using AutoDOCK Vina and AutoDOCK 4.2 with the generated 3D model, showing that both domains were well superimposed on the homologs. Both molecular-docking tools calculated good binding-energy values between the sulphate ion and Ser419 and Val172, with the formation of hydrogen bonds and van der Waals interactions, respectively, suggesting that AST68 was one of the sulphate transporters involved in GSL biosynthesis. This finding illustrates the ability to use computational analysis on gene co-expression data to screen and characterise plant TPs on a large scale to comprehensively elucidate GSL metabolism in A. thaliana. Most importantly, newly identified potential GSL transporters can serve as molecular tools in improving the nutritional value of crops.
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Xu B, Sai N, Gilliham M. The emerging role of GABA as a transport regulator and physiological signal. PLANT PHYSIOLOGY 2021; 187:2005-2016. [PMID: 35235673 PMCID: PMC8644139 DOI: 10.1093/plphys/kiab347] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2021] [Accepted: 07/10/2021] [Indexed: 05/07/2023]
Abstract
While the proposal that γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) acts a signal in plants is decades old, a signaling mode of action for plant GABA has been unveiled only relatively recently. Here, we review the recent research that demonstrates how GABA regulates anion transport through aluminum-activated malate transporters (ALMTs) and speculation that GABA also targets other proteins. The ALMT family of anion channels modulates multiple physiological processes in plants, with many members still to be characterized, opening up the possibility that GABA has broad regulatory roles in plants. We focus on the role of GABA in regulating pollen tube growth and stomatal pore aperture, and we speculate on its role in long-distance signaling and how it might be involved in cross talk with hormonal signals. We show that in barley (Hordeum vulgare), guard cell opening is regulated by GABA, as it is in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), to regulate water use efficiency, which impacts drought tolerance. We also discuss the links between glutamate and GABA in generating signals in plants, particularly related to pollen tube growth, wounding, and long-distance electrical signaling, and explore potential interactions of GABA signals with hormones, such as abscisic acid, jasmonic acid, and ethylene. We conclude by postulating that GABA encodes a signal that links plant primary metabolism to physiological status to fine tune plant responses to the environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bo Xu
- Plant Transport and Signalling Lab, ARC Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology, Waite Research Institute, Glen Osmond, South Australia 5064, Australia
- School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, University of Adelaide, Glen Osmond, South Australia 5064, Australia
- Author for communication:
| | - Na Sai
- Plant Transport and Signalling Lab, ARC Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology, Waite Research Institute, Glen Osmond, South Australia 5064, Australia
- School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, University of Adelaide, Glen Osmond, South Australia 5064, Australia
| | - Matthew Gilliham
- Plant Transport and Signalling Lab, ARC Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology, Waite Research Institute, Glen Osmond, South Australia 5064, Australia
- School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, University of Adelaide, Glen Osmond, South Australia 5064, Australia
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A single residue deletion in the barley HKT1;5 P189 variant restores plasma membrane localisation but not Na + conductance. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-BIOMEMBRANES 2021; 1863:183669. [PMID: 34139196 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbamem.2021.183669] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2021] [Revised: 06/01/2021] [Accepted: 06/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Leaf Na+ exclusion, mediated by plasma membrane-localised Class 1 High-affinity potassium (K+) Transporters (HKTs), is a key mechanism contributing to salinity tolerance of several major crop plants. We determined previously that the leucine to proline residue substitution at position 189 (L189P) in barley HvHKT1;5 disrupts its characteristic plasma membrane localisation and Na+ conductance. Here, we focus on a surprising observation that a single residue deletion of methionine at position 372 (M372del) within the conserved VMMYL motif in plant HKTs, restores plasma membrane localisation but not Na+ conductance in HvHKT1;5 P189. To clarify why the singular M372 deletion regains plasma membrane localisation, we built 3D models and defined α-helical assembly pathways of the P189 M372del mutant, and compared these findings to the wild-type protein, and the HvHKT1;5 L189 variant and its M372del mutant. We find that α-helical association and assembly pathways in HvHKT1;5 proteins fall in two contrasting categories. Inspections of structural flexibility through molecular dynamics simulations revealed that the conformational states of HvHKT1;5 P189 diverge from those of the L189 variant and M372del mutants. We propose that M372del in HvHKT1;5 P189 instigates structural rearrangements allowing routing to the plasma membrane, while the restoration of conductance would require further interventions. We integrate the microscopy, electrophysiology, and biocomputational data and discuss how a profound structural change in HvHKT1;5 P189 M372del impacts its α-helical protein association pathway and flexibility, and how these features underlie a delicate balance leading to restoring plasma membrane localisation but not Na+ conductance.
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Kotula L, Garcia Caparros P, Zörb C, Colmer TD, Flowers TJ. Improving crop salt tolerance using transgenic approaches: An update and physiological analysis. PLANT, CELL & ENVIRONMENT 2020; 43:2932-2956. [PMID: 32744336 DOI: 10.1111/pce.13865] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2020] [Revised: 07/13/2020] [Accepted: 07/24/2020] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
Salinization of land is likely to increase due to climate change with impact on agricultural production. Since most species used as crops are sensitive to salinity, improvement of salt tolerance is needed to maintain global food production. This review summarises successes and failures of transgenic approaches in improving salt tolerance in crop species. A conceptual model of coordinated physiological mechanisms in roots and shoots required for salt tolerance is presented. Transgenic plants overexpressing genes of key proteins contributing to Na+ 'exclusion' (PM-ATPases with SOS1 antiporter, and HKT1 transporter) and Na+ compartmentation in vacuoles (V-H+ ATPase and V-H+ PPase with NHX antiporter), as well as two proteins potentially involved in alleviating water deficit during salt stress (aquaporins and dehydrins), were evaluated. Of the 51 transformations, with gene(s) involved in Na+ 'exclusion' or Na+ vacuolar compartmentation that contained quantitative data on growth and include a non-saline control, 48 showed improvements in salt tolerance (less impact on plant mass) of transgenic plants, but with only two tested in field conditions. Of these 51 transformations, 26 involved crop species. Tissue ion concentrations were altered, but not always in the same way. Although glasshouse data are promising, field studies are required to assess crop salinity tolerance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lukasz Kotula
- UWA School of Agriculture and Environment, Faculty of Science, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia
- ARC Industrial Transformation Research Hub on Legumes for Sustainable Agriculture, Faculty of Science, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia
| | - Pedro Garcia Caparros
- Agronomy Department of Superior School Engineering, University of Almeria, CIAIMBITAL, Agrifood Campus of International Excellence ceiA3, Almería, Spain
| | - Christian Zörb
- Institute of Crop Science, Quality of Plant Products 340e, University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Timothy D Colmer
- UWA School of Agriculture and Environment, Faculty of Science, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia
- ARC Industrial Transformation Research Hub on Legumes for Sustainable Agriculture, Faculty of Science, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia
| | - Timothy J Flowers
- UWA School of Agriculture and Environment, Faculty of Science, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Sussex, Sussex, UK
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Xu B, Hrmova M, Gilliham M. High affinity Na + transport by wheat HKT1;5 is blocked by K . PLANT DIRECT 2020; 4:e00275. [PMID: 33103046 PMCID: PMC7576878 DOI: 10.1002/pld3.275] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2020] [Accepted: 09/21/2020] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
The wheat sodium transporters TmHKT1;5-A and TaHKT1;5-D are encoded by genes underlying the major shoot Na+ exclusion loci Nax2 and Kna1 from Triticum monococcum (Tm) and Triticum aestivum (Ta), respectively. In contrast to HKT2 transporters that have been shown to exhibit high affinity K+-dependent Na+ transport, HKT1 proteins have, with one exception, only been shown to catalyze low affinity Na+ transport and no K+ transport. Here, using heterologous expression in Xenopus laevis oocytes we uncover a novel property of HKT1 proteins, that both TmHKT1;5-A and TaHKT1;5-D encode dual (high and low) affinity Na+-transporters with the high-affinity component being abolished when external K+ is in excess of external Na+. Three-dimensional structural modeling suggested that, compared to Na+, K+ is bound more tightly in the selectivity filter region by means of additional van der Waals forces, which is likely to explain the K+ block at the molecular level. The low-affinity component for Na+ transport of TmHKT1;5-A had a lower K m than that of TaHKT1;5-D and was less sensitive to external K+. We propose that these properties contribute towards the improvements in shoot Na+-exclusion and crop plant salt tolerance following the introgression of TmHKT1;5-A into diverse wheat backgrounds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bo Xu
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy BiologyUniversity of AdelaideWaite Research PrecinctGlen OsmondSAAustralia
- School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, and Waite Research InstituteUniversity of AdelaideWaite Research PrecinctGlen OsmondSAAustralia
| | - Maria Hrmova
- School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, and Waite Research InstituteUniversity of AdelaideWaite Research PrecinctGlen OsmondSAAustralia
- School of Life ScienceHuaiyin Normal UniversityHuai’anChina
| | - Matthew Gilliham
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy BiologyUniversity of AdelaideWaite Research PrecinctGlen OsmondSAAustralia
- School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, and Waite Research InstituteUniversity of AdelaideWaite Research PrecinctGlen OsmondSAAustralia
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