Plants and sodium ions: keeping company with the enemy.
Plants face a dilemma about sodium metabolism. Uptake of ubiquitous sodium ions is desirable as a way to build osmotic potential, absorb water and sustain turgor, but excess sodium ions may be toxic. Information from a number of plant species about the proteins involved in sodium-ion uptake helps to explain how plants manage to take in just the right amount.
Pardo
Jose M
JM
Instituto de Recursos Naturales y Agrobiología, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, PO Box 1052, Sevilla 41080, Spain. pardo@cica.es
Quintero
Francisco J
FJ
D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D002118:Calcium / Q000502:physiology; D002414:Cations, Monovalent / Q000378:metabolism; D009712:Nucleotides, Cyclic / Q000502:physiology; D059828:Plant Cells; D010944:Plants / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D011188:Potassium / Q000378:metabolism; D012964:Sodium / Q000378:metabolism*; D028021:Sodium-Potassium-Chloride Symporters / Q000378:metabolism
D002414:Cations, Monovalent; D009712:Nucleotides, Cyclic; D028021:Sodium-Potassium-Chloride Symporters; D012964:Sodium; D011188:Potassium; D002118:Calcium