title: The ubiquitous distribution of late embryogenesis abundant proteins across cell compartments in Arabidopsis offers tailored protection against abiotic stress.
abstract: Late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) proteins are hydrophilic, mostly intrinsically disordered proteins, which play major roles in desiccation tolerance. In Arabidopsis thaliana, 51 genes encoding LEA proteins clustered into nine families have been inventoried. To increase our understanding of the yet enigmatic functions of these gene families, we report the subcellular location of each protein. Experimental data highlight the limits of in silico predictions for analysis of subcellular localization. Thirty-six LEA proteins localized to the cytosol, with most being able to diffuse into the nucleus. Three proteins were exclusively localized in plastids or mitochondria, while two others were found dually targeted to these organelles. Targeting cleavage sites could be determined for five of these proteins. Three proteins were found to be endoplasmic reticulum (ER) residents, two were vacuolar, and two were secreted. A single protein was identified in pexophagosomes. While most LEA protein families have a unique subcellular localization, members of the LEA_4 family are widely distributed (cytosol, mitochondria, plastid, ER, and pexophagosome) but share the presence of the class A α-helix motif. They are thus expected to establish interactions with various cellular membranes under stress conditions. The broad subcellular distribution of LEA proteins highlights the requirement for each cellular compartment to be provided with protective mechanisms to cope with desiccation or cold stress.
authors.affiliation: Université d'Angers, UMR 1345 Institut de Recherche en Horticulture et Semences, F-49045 Angers, France INRA, UMR 1345 Institut de Recherche en Horticulture et Semences, F-49045 Angers, France.
authors.forename: Adrien
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Candat
authors.affiliation: Université d'Angers, UMR 1345 Institut de Recherche en Horticulture et Semences, F-49045 Angers, France.
authors.forename: Gaël
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Paszkiewicz
authors.affiliation: INRA, UMR 1345 Institut de Recherche en Horticulture et Semences, F-49045 Angers, France.
authors.forename: Martine
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Neveu
authors.affiliation: Institut de Pharmacologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire, Université de Nice Sophia-Antipolis and Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Unité Mixte de Recherche 7275, F-06560 Valbonne, France.
authors.forename: Romain
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gautier
authors.affiliation: Université d'Angers, UMR 1345 Institut de Recherche en Horticulture et Semences, F-49045 Angers, France.
authors.forename: David C
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8980-240X
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Logan
authors.affiliation: Agrocampus Ouest, UMR 1345 Institut de Recherche en Horticulture et Semences, F-49045 Angers, France.
authors.forename: Marie-Hélène
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6002-3130
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Avelange-Macherel
authors.affiliation: Université d'Angers, UMR 1345 Institut de Recherche en Horticulture et Semences, F-49045 Angers, France david.macherel@univ-angers.fr.
authors.forename: David
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3352-2185
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Macherel
mesh_terms: D020816:Amino Acid Motifs; D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000166:cytology / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000378:metabolism; D003080:Cold Temperature; D019295:Computational Biology; D003890:Desiccation; D017930:Genes, Reporter; D015388:Organelles / Q000378:metabolism; D010802:Phylogeny; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified; D021381:Protein Transport; D011523:Protoplasts; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; D036226:Seedlings / Q000166:cytology / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D013312:Stress, Physiological
chemical_list: D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D010940:Plant Proteins; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; C066246:late embryogenesis abundant protein, plant