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Zou W, Yu Q, Ma Y, Sun G, Feng X, Ge L. Pivotal role of heterotrimeric G protein in the crosstalk between sugar signaling and abiotic stress response in plants. PLANT PHYSIOLOGY AND BIOCHEMISTRY : PPB 2024; 210:108567. [PMID: 38554538 DOI: 10.1016/j.plaphy.2024.108567] [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: 11/08/2023] [Revised: 03/12/2024] [Accepted: 03/25/2024] [Indexed: 04/01/2024]
Abstract
Heterotrimeric G-proteins are key modulators of multiple signaling and developmental pathways in plants, in which they act as molecular switches to engage in transmitting various stimuli signals from outside into the cells. Substantial studies have identified G proteins as essential components of the organismal response to abiotic stress, leading to adaptation and survival in plants. Meanwhile, sugars are also well acknowledged key players in stress perception, signaling, and gene expression regulation. Connections between the two significant signaling pathways in stress response are of interest to a general audience in plant biology. In this article, advances unraveling a pivotal role of G proteins in the process of sugar signals outside the cells being translated into the operation of autophagy in cells during stress are reviewed. In addition, we have presented recent findings on G proteins regulating the response to drought, salt, alkali, cold, heat and other abiotic stresses. Perspectives on G-protein research are also provided in the end. Since G protein signaling regulates many agronomic traits, elucidation of detailed mechanism of the related pathways would provide useful insights for the breeding of abiotic stress resistant and high-yield crops.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenjiao Zou
- Collaborative Innovation Center for Ecological Protection and High Quality Development of Characteristic Traditional Chinese Medicine in the Yellow River Basin, Institute of Pharmaceutical Research, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, 250355, China
| | - Qian Yu
- The Characteristic Laboratory of Crop Germplasm Innovation and Application, Provincial Department of Education, College of Agronomy, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, 266109, China
| | - Yu Ma
- The Characteristic Laboratory of Crop Germplasm Innovation and Application, Provincial Department of Education, College of Agronomy, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, 266109, China
| | - Guoning Sun
- The Characteristic Laboratory of Crop Germplasm Innovation and Application, Provincial Department of Education, College of Agronomy, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, 266109, China
| | - Xue Feng
- The Characteristic Laboratory of Crop Germplasm Innovation and Application, Provincial Department of Education, College of Agronomy, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, 266109, China
| | - Lei Ge
- The Characteristic Laboratory of Crop Germplasm Innovation and Application, Provincial Department of Education, College of Agronomy, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, 266109, China; Academician Workstation of Agricultural High-tech Industrial Area of the Yellow River Delta, National Center of Technology Innovation for Comprehensive Utilization of Saline-Alkali Land, Dongying, Shandong, 257300, China.
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Torres-Rodriguez MD, Lee SG, Roy Choudhury S, Paul R, Selvam B, Shukla D, Jez JM, Pandey S. Structure-function analysis of plant G-protein regulatory mechanisms identifies key Gα-RGS protein interactions. J Biol Chem 2024; 300:107252. [PMID: 38569936 PMCID: PMC11061236 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2024.107252] [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: 02/09/2024] [Revised: 03/20/2024] [Accepted: 03/28/2024] [Indexed: 04/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Heterotrimeric GTP-binding protein alpha subunit (Gα) and its cognate regulator of G-protein signaling (RGS) protein transduce signals in eukaryotes spanning protists, amoeba, animals, fungi, and plants. The core catalytic mechanisms of the GTPase activity of Gα and the interaction interface with RGS for the acceleration of GTP hydrolysis seem to be conserved across these groups; however, the RGS gene is under low selective pressure in plants, resulting in its frequent loss. Our current understanding of the structural basis of Gα:RGS regulation in plants has been shaped by Arabidopsis Gα, (AtGPA1), which has a cognate RGS protein. To gain a comprehensive understanding of this regulation beyond Arabidopsis, we obtained the x-ray crystal structures of Oryza sativa Gα, which has no RGS, and Selaginella moellendorffi (a lycophyte) Gα that has low sequence similarity with AtGPA1 but has an RGS. We show that the three-dimensional structure, protein-protein interaction with RGS, and the dynamic features of these Gα are similar to AtGPA1 and metazoan Gα. Molecular dynamic simulation of the Gα-RGS interaction identifies the contacts established by specific residues of the switch regions of GTP-bound Gα, crucial for this interaction, but finds no significant difference due to specific amino acid substitutions. Together, our data provide valuable insights into the regulatory mechanisms of plant G-proteins but do not support the hypothesis of adaptive co-evolution of Gα:RGS proteins in plants.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Soon Goo Lee
- Department of Molecular & Cellular Biology, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, Georgia, USA
| | - Swarup Roy Choudhury
- Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, St Louis, Missouri, USA; Department of Biology, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Tirupati, India
| | - Rabindranath Paul
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, USA
| | - Balaji Selvam
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, USA
| | - Diwakar Shukla
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, USA
| | - Joseph M Jez
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St Louis, St Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Sona Pandey
- Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, St Louis, Missouri, USA.
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Mohanasundaram B, Pandey S. Moving beyond the arabidopsis-centric view of G-protein signaling in plants. TRENDS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2023; 28:1406-1421. [PMID: 37625950 DOI: 10.1016/j.tplants.2023.07.014] [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: 12/16/2022] [Revised: 07/24/2023] [Accepted: 07/28/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023]
Abstract
Heterotrimeric G-protein-mediated signaling is a key mechanism to transduce a multitude of endogenous and environmental signals in diverse organisms. The scope and expectations of plant G-protein research were set by pioneering work in metazoans. Given the similarity of the core constituents, G-protein-signaling mechanisms were presumed to be universally conserved. However, because of the enormous diversity of survival strategies and endless forms among eukaryotes, the signal, its interpretation, and responses vary even among different plant groups. Earlier G-protein research in arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) has emphasized its divergence from Metazoa. Here, we compare recent evidence from diverse plant lineages with the available arabidopsis G-protein model and discuss the conserved and novel protein components, signaling mechanisms, and response regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sona Pandey
- Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, 975 N. Warson Road, St Louis, MO 63132, USA.
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Prasanna JA, Mandal VK, Kumar D, Chakraborty N, Raghuram N. Nitrate-responsive transcriptome analysis of rice RGA1 mutant reveals the role of G-protein alpha subunit in negative regulation of nitrogen-sensitivity and use efficiency. PLANT CELL REPORTS 2023; 42:1987-2010. [PMID: 37874341 DOI: 10.1007/s00299-023-03078-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2023] [Accepted: 09/19/2023] [Indexed: 10/25/2023]
Abstract
KEY MESSAGE Nitrate-responsive transcriptomic, phenotypic and physiological analyses of rice RGA1 mutant revealed many novel RGA1-regulated genes/processes/traits related to nitrogen use efficiency, and provided robust genetic evidence of RGA1-regulation of NUE. Nitrogen (N) use efficiency (NUE) is important for sustainable agriculture. G-protein signalling was implicated in N-response/NUE in rice, but needed firm genetic characterization of the role of alpha subunit (RGA1). The knock-out mutant of RGA1 in japonica rice exhibited lesser nitrate-dose sensitivity than the wild type (WT), in yield and NUE. We, therefore, investigated its genomewide nitrate-response relative to WT. It revealed 3416 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), including 719 associated with development, grain yield and phenotypic traits for NUE. The upregulated DEGs were related to photosynthesis, chlorophyll, tetrapyrrole and porphyrin biosynthesis, while the downregulated DEGs belonged to cellular protein metabolism and transport, small GTPase signalling, cell redox homeostasis, etc. We validated 26 nitrate-responsive DEGs across functional categories by RT-qPCR. Physiological validation of nitrate-response in the mutant and the WT at 1.5 and 15 mM doses revealed higher chlorophyll and stomatal length but decreased stomatal density, conductance and transpiration. The consequent increase in photosynthesis and water use efficiency may have contributed to better yield and NUE in the mutant, whereas the WT was N-dose sensitive. The mutant was not as N-dose-responsive as the WT in shoot/root growth, productive tillers and heading date, but equally responsive as WT in total N and protein content. The RGA1 mutant was less impacted by higher N-dose or salt stress in terms of yield, protein content, photosynthetic performance, relative water content, water use efficiency and catalase activity. PPI network analyses revealed known NUE-related proteins as RGA1 interactors. Therefore, RGA1 negatively regulates N-dose sensitivity and NUE in rice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jangam Annie Prasanna
- Centre for Sustainable Nitrogen and Nutrient Management, School of Biotechnology, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Sector 16C, Dwarka, New Delhi, 110078, India
| | - Vikas Kumar Mandal
- Centre for Sustainable Nitrogen and Nutrient Management, School of Biotechnology, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Sector 16C, Dwarka, New Delhi, 110078, India
- Prof. H.S. Srivastava Foundation for Science and Society, 10B/7, Madan Mohan Malviya Marg, Lucknow, India
| | - Dinesh Kumar
- Division of Agronomy, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Pusa Campus, New Delhi, India
| | - Navjyoti Chakraborty
- Centre for Sustainable Nitrogen and Nutrient Management, School of Biotechnology, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Sector 16C, Dwarka, New Delhi, 110078, India.
| | - Nandula Raghuram
- Centre for Sustainable Nitrogen and Nutrient Management, School of Biotechnology, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Sector 16C, Dwarka, New Delhi, 110078, India.
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Mohanasundaram B, Dodds A, Kukshal V, Jez JM, Pandey S. Distribution and the evolutionary history of G-protein components in plant and algal lineages. PLANT PHYSIOLOGY 2022; 189:1519-1535. [PMID: 35377452 PMCID: PMC9237705 DOI: 10.1093/plphys/kiac153] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2021] [Accepted: 03/08/2022] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Heterotrimeric G-protein complexes comprising Gα-, Gβ-, and Gγ-subunits and the regulator of G-protein signaling (RGS) are conserved across most eukaryotic lineages. Signaling pathways mediated by these proteins influence overall growth, development, and physiology. In plants, this protein complex has been characterized primarily from angiosperms with the exception of spreading-leaved earth moss (Physcomitrium patens) and Chara braunii (charophytic algae). Even within angiosperms, specific G-protein components are missing in certain species, whereas unique plant-specific variants-the extra-large Gα (XLGα) and the cysteine-rich Gγ proteins-also exist. The distribution and evolutionary history of G-proteins and their function in nonangiosperm lineages remain mostly unknown. We explored this using the wealth of available sequence data spanning algae to angiosperms representing extant species that diverged approximately 1,500 million years ago, using BLAST, synteny analysis, and custom-built Hidden Markov Model profile searches. We show that a minimal set of components forming the XLGαβγ trimer exists in the entire land plant lineage, but their presence is sporadic in algae. Additionally, individual components have distinct evolutionary histories. The XLGα exhibits many lineage-specific gene duplications, whereas Gα and RGS show several instances of gene loss. Similarly, Gβ remained constant in both number and structure, but Gγ diverged before the emergence of land plants and underwent changes in protein domains, which led to three distinct subtypes. These results highlight the evolutionary oddities and summarize the phyletic patterns of this conserved signaling pathway in plants. They also provide a framework to formulate pertinent questions on plant G-protein signaling within an evolutionary context.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Audrey Dodds
- Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, St Louis, Missouri 63132, USA
| | - Vandna Kukshal
- Department of Biology, Washington University, St Louis, Missouri 63130, USA
| | - Joseph M Jez
- Department of Biology, Washington University, St Louis, Missouri 63130, USA
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Fernández H, Grossmann J, Gagliardini V, Feito I, Rivera A, Rodríguez L, Quintanilla LG, Quesada V, Cañal MJ, Grossniklaus U. Sexual and Apogamous Species of Woodferns Show Different Protein and Phytohormone Profiles. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2021; 12:718932. [PMID: 34868105 PMCID: PMC8633544 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2021.718932] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2021] [Accepted: 09/23/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The gametophyte of ferns reproduces either by sexual or asexual means. In the latter, apogamy represents a peculiar case of apomixis, in which an embryo is formed from somatic cells. A proteomic and physiological approach was applied to the apogamous fern Dryopteris affinis ssp. affinis and its sexual relative D. oreades. The proteomic analysis compared apogamous vs. female gametophytes, whereas the phytohormone study included, in addition to females, three apogamous stages (filamentous, spatulate, and cordate). The proteomic profiles revealed a total of 879 proteins and, after annotation, different regulation was found in 206 proteins of D. affinis and 166 of its sexual counterpart. The proteins upregulated in D. affinis are mostly associated to protein metabolism (including folding, transport, and proteolysis), ribosome biogenesis, gene expression and translation, while in the sexual counterpart, they account largely for starch and sucrose metabolism, generation of energy and photosynthesis. Likewise, ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) was used to assess the levels of indol-3-acetic acid (IAA); the cytokinins: 6-benzylaminopurine (BA), trans-Zeatine (Z), trans-Zeatin riboside (ZR), dyhidrozeatine (DHZ), dyhidrozeatin riboside (DHZR), isopentenyl adenine (iP), isopentenyl adenosine (iPR), abscisic acid (ABA), the gibberellins GA3 and GA4, salicylic acid (SA), and the brassinosteroids: brassinolide (BL) and castasterone (CS). IAA, the cytokinins Z, ZR, iPR, the gibberellin GA4, the brassinosteoids castasterone, and ABA accumulated more in the sexual gametophyte than in the apogamous one. When comparing the three apogamous stages, BA and SA peaked in filamentous, GA3 and BL in spatulate and DHRZ in cordate gametophytes. The results point to the existence of large metabolic differences between apogamous and sexual gametophytes, and invite to consider the fern gametophyte as a good experimental system to deepen our understanding of plant reproduction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helena Fernández
- Area of Plant Physiology, Department of Organisms and Systems Biology, Oviedo University, Oviedo, Spain
| | - Jonas Grossmann
- Functional Genomics Center, Zurich, Switzerland
- Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Valeria Gagliardini
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology & Zurich and Basel Plant Science Center, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Isabel Feito
- Servicio Regional de Investigación y Desarrollo Agroalimentario (SERIDA), Finca Experimental La Mata, Grado, Spain
| | - Alejandro Rivera
- Area of Plant Physiology, Department of Organisms and Systems Biology, Oviedo University, Oviedo, Spain
| | - Lucía Rodríguez
- Servicio Regional de Investigación y Desarrollo Agroalimentario (SERIDA), Finca Experimental La Mata, Grado, Spain
| | - Luis G. Quintanilla
- Department of Biology and Geology, Physics and Inorganic Chemistry, Rey Juan Carlos University, Móstoles, Spain
| | - Víctor Quesada
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Institute of Oncology of the Principality of Asturias, Oviedo University, Móstoles, Spain
| | - Mª Jesús Cañal
- Area of Plant Physiology, Department of Organisms and Systems Biology, Oviedo University, Oviedo, Spain
| | - Ueli Grossniklaus
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology & Zurich and Basel Plant Science Center, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
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Research Advances in Heterotrimeric G-Protein α Subunits and Uncanonical G-Protein Coupled Receptors in Plants. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22168678. [PMID: 34445383 PMCID: PMC8395518 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22168678] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2021] [Revised: 08/05/2021] [Accepted: 08/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
As crucial signal transducers, G-proteins and G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) have attracted increasing attention in the field of signal transduction. Research on G-proteins and GPCRs has mainly focused on animals, while research on plants is relatively rare. The mode of action of G-proteins is quite different from that in animals. The G-protein α (Gα) subunit is the most essential member of the G-protein signal cycle in animals and plants. The G-protein is activated when Gα releases GDP and binds to GTP, and the relationships with the GPCR and the downstream signal are also achieved by Gα coupling. It is important to study the role of Gα in the signaling pathway to explore the regulatory mechanism of G-proteins. The existence of a self-activated Gα in plants makes it unnecessary for the canonical GPCR to activate the G-protein by exchanging GDP with GTP. However, putative GPCRs have been found and proven to play important roles in G-protein signal transduction. The unique mode of action of G-proteins and the function of putative GPCRs in plants suggest that the same definition used in animal research cannot be used to study uncanonical GPCRs in plants. This review focuses on the different functions of the Gα and the mode of action between plants and animals as well as the functions of the uncanonical GPCR. This review employs a new perspective to define uncanonical GPCRs in plants and emphasizes the role of uncanonical GPCRs and Gα subunits in plant stress resistance and agricultural production.
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