title: Ca2+-dependent and -independent abscisic acid activation of plasma membrane anion channels in guard cells of Nicotiana tabacum.
abstract: Drought induces stomatal closure, a response that is associated with the activation of plasma membrane anion channels in guard cells, by the phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA). In several species, this response is associated with changes in the cytoplasmic free Ca(2+) concentration. In Vicia faba, however, guard cell anion channels activate in a Ca(2+)-independent manner. Because of potential differences between species, Nicotiana tabacum guard cells were studied in intact plants, with simultaneous recordings of the plasma membrane conductance and the cytoplasmic free Ca(2+) concentration. ABA triggered transient rises in cytoplasmic Ca(2+) in the majority of the guard cells (14 out of 19). In seven out of 14 guard cells, the change in cytoplasmic free Ca(2+) closely matched the activation of anion channels, while the Ca(2+) rise was delayed in seven other cells. In the remaining five cells, ABA stimulated anion channels without a change in the cytoplasmic Ca(2+) level. Even though ABA could activate anion channels in N. tabacum guard cells independent of a rise in the cytoplasmic Ca(2+) concentration, patch clamp experiments showed that anion channels in these cells are stimulated by elevated Ca(2+) in an ATP-dependent manner. Guard cells thus seem to have evolved both Ca(2+)-independent and -dependent ABA signaling pathways. Guard cells of N. tabacum apparently utilize both pathways, while ABA signaling in V. faba seems to be restricted to the Ca(2+)-independent pathway.
authors.affiliation: University of Wurzburg, Biocenter, Molecular Plant Physiology and Biophysics, Julius-von-Sachs Institute for Biosciences, D-97082 Wurzburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Holger
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Marten
authors.forename: Kai R
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Konrad
authors.forename: Petra
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Dietrich
authors.forename: M Rob G
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Roelfsema
authors.forename: Rainer
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hedrich
mesh_terms: D000040:Abscisic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology; D007473:Ion Channels / Q000378:metabolism*; D018408:Patch-Clamp Techniques; D010937:Plant Growth Regulators / Q000494:pharmacology*; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D018526:Plant Transpiration; D015398:Signal Transduction; D013045:Species Specificity; D014026:Nicotiana / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D007473:Ion Channels; D010937:Plant Growth Regulators; D010940:Plant Proteins; D000040:Abscisic Acid; D002118:Calcium