title: Cadmium activates Arabidopsis MPK3 and MPK6 via accumulation of reactive oxygen species.
abstract: Cadmium (Cd) is a non-essential toxic heavy metal that influences normal growth and development of plants. However, the molecular mechanisms by which plants recognize and respond to Cd remain poorly understood. We show that, in Arabidopsis, Cd activates the mitogen-activated protein kinases, MPK3 and MPK6, in a dose-dependent manner. Following treatment with Cd, these two MAPKs exhibited much higher activity in the roots than in the leaves, and pre-treatment with the reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenger, glutathione, effectively inhibited their activation. These results suggest that the Cd sensing signaling pathway uses a build-up of ROS to trigger activation of Arabidopsis MPK3 and MPK6.
authors.affiliation: Division of Applied Life Science (BK21 Program), Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology Research Center, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Xiao-Min
authors.initials: XM
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Kyung Eun
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Kang-Chang
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Xuan Canh
authors.initials: XC
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.forename: Hay Ju
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Han
authors.forename: Mi Soon
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Jung
authors.forename: Ho Soo
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Sun Ho
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Hyeong Cheol
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Dae-Jin
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Yun
authors.forename: Woo Sik
authors.initials: WS
authors.lastname: Chung
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological / Q000235:genetics; D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000378:metabolism; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D002104:Cadmium / Q000633:toxicity*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D005978:Glutathione; D020929:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Kinases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D020928:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D009154:Mutation; D018384:Oxidative Stress / Q000235:genetics; D018515:Plant Leaves / Q000378:metabolism; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000378:metabolism; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species / Q000378:metabolism*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
chemical_list: D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species; D002104:Cadmium; D020928:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases; D020929:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Kinases; D005978:Glutathione