2011 journal article
An ER-targeted calcium-binding peptide confers salt and drought tolerance mediated by CIPK6 in Arabidopsis
PLANTA, 235(3), 539–552.
author keywords: ER calcium; Calcium-binding peptide (CBP); CBL-interacting protein kinase (CIPK6); Drought; Salt
MeSH headings : Arabidopsis / drug effects; Arabidopsis / genetics; Arabidopsis / metabolism; Calcium / metabolism; Chlorophyll / metabolism; Droughts; Endoplasmic Reticulum / metabolism; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; Immunoblotting; Peptides / genetics; Peptides / metabolism; Plant Proteins / genetics; Plant Proteins / metabolism; Plant Roots / drug effects; Plant Roots / genetics; Plant Roots / metabolism; Plants, Genetically Modified / drug effects; Plants, Genetically Modified / genetics; Plants, Genetically Modified / metabolism; Potassium / metabolism; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; Salts / pharmacology; Sodium / metabolism
TL;DR:
This work demonstrates that ER (or nuclear) Ca2+ can directly participate in signal transduction to alter gene expression and the discovery of a method for increasing Ca 2+ levels without deleterious effects on plant growth may have practical applications.
(via Semantic Scholar)
UN Sustainable Development Goal Categories
2. Zero Hunger
(Web of Science)
13. Climate Action
(Web of Science)
Source: Web Of Science
Added: August 6, 2018
Different plant organelles have high internal stores of Ca(2+) compared to the cytoplasm and could play independent roles in stress responses or signal transduction. We used a GFP fusion with the C-domain of calreticulin, which shows low-affinity, high capacity Ca(2+) binding in the ER, as a calcium-binding peptide (CBP) to specifically increase stores in the ER and nucleus. Despite the presence of a signal sequence and KDEL retention sequence, our work and previous studies (Brandizzi et al. Plant Journal 34:269-281, 2003) demonstrated both ER and nuclear localization of GFP-CBP. Under normal conditions, GFP-CBP-expressing lines had ~25% more total Ca(2+) and higher levels of chlorophyll and seed yield than wild type and GFP controls. CBP-expressing plants also had better survival under intermittent drought or high salt treatments and increased root growth. One member of the CIPK (calcineurin B-like interacting protein kinase) gene family, CIPK6, was up-regulated in CBP-expressing plants, even under non-stress conditions. A null mutation in cipk6 abolished the increased stress tolerance of CBP-transgenic plants, as well as the CBP-mediated induction of two stress-associated genes, DREB1A and RD29A, under non-stress conditions. Although this suggested that it was the induction of CIPK6, rather than localized changes in Ca(2+), that resulted in increased survival under adverse conditions, CIPK6 induction still required Ca(2+). This work demonstrates that ER (or nuclear) Ca(2+) can directly participate in signal transduction to alter gene expression. The discovery of a method for increasing Ca(2+) levels without deleterious effects on plant growth may have practical applications.