title: An inducible, modular system for spatio-temporal control of gene expression in stomatal guard cells.
abstract: Stomata, flanked by pairs of guard cells, are small pores on the leaf surfaces of plants and they function to control gas exchange between plants and the atmosphere. Stomata will open when water is available to allow for the uptake of carbon dioxide for photosynthesis. During periods of drought, stomata will close to reduce desiccation stress. As such, optimal functioning of stomata will impact on water use efficiency by plants. The development of an inducible, modular system for robust and targeted gene expression in stomatal guard cells is reported here. It is shown that application of ethanol vapour to activate the gene expression system did not affect the ability of stomata to respond to ABA in bioassays to determine the promotion of stomatal closure and the inhibition of stomatal opening. The system that has been developed allows for robust spatio-temporal control of gene expression in all cells of the stomatal lineage, thereby enabling molecular engineering of stomatal function as well as studies on stomatal development.
authors.affiliation: School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland.
authors.forename: Tou Cheu
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Xiong
authors.forename: Cliona M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Hann
authors.forename: John P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Chambers
authors.forename: Marie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Surget
authors.forename: Carl K-Y
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Ng
mesh_terms: D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000166:cytology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D005821:Genetic Techniques; D018613:Microscopy, Confocal; D018515:Plant Leaves; D054046:Plant Stomata / Q000166:cytology* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development
references.citation: Plant J. 2002 Aug;31(3):375-83
references.pmid: 12164816
references.citation: Annu Rev Plant Biol. 2007;58:163-81
references.pmid: 17201685
references.citation: Plant J. 2006 Feb;45(4):651-83
references.pmid: 16441354
references.citation: Plant J. 2003 Apr;34(1):47-55
references.pmid: 12662308
references.citation: Curr Opin Plant Biol. 2001 Dec;4(6):555-60
references.pmid: 11641073
references.citation: Cell. 2001 Dec 14;107(6):711-4
references.pmid: 11747807
references.citation: PLoS Biol. 2006 Oct;4(10):e312
references.pmid: 16968132
references.citation: Plant Methods. 2006 Oct 24;2:16
references.pmid: 17062132
references.citation: Curr Opin Plant Biol. 2004 Oct;7(5):537-46
references.pmid: 15337096
references.citation: Plant Cell. 2008 Jul;20(7):1775-85
references.pmid: 18641265
references.citation: Development. 2003 Feb;130(4):785-96
references.pmid: 12506008
references.citation: New Phytol. 2005 Sep;167(3):665-91
references.pmid: 16101906
references.citation: Plant Mol Biol. 2005 Mar;57(4):503-16
references.pmid: 15821977
references.citation: Plant J. 2004 Apr;38(1):164-71
references.pmid: 15053769
references.citation: Bioessays. 2007 Sep;29(9):861-70
references.pmid: 17691100
references.citation: Nat Biotechnol. 1998 Feb;16(2):177-80
references.pmid: 9487526
references.citation: Trends Plant Sci. 2005 Aug;10(8):357-61
references.pmid: 15993643
references.citation: Nature. 2003 Aug 21;424(6951):901-8
references.pmid: 12931178
references.citation: Plant Methods. 2008 Feb 19;4:6
references.pmid: 18284694
references.citation: Plant J. 1997 Apr;11(4):871-82
references.pmid: 9161042
references.citation: Nature. 2001 Mar 15;410(6826):327-30
references.pmid: 11268200
references.citation: Plant Physiol. 1995 Oct;109(2):371-4
references.pmid: 7480337
references.citation: New Phytol. 2008;178(1):9-23
references.pmid: 18266617
references.citation: Plant J. 2001 Oct;28(2):225-35
references.pmid: 11722766