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Identifying the Pressure Points of Acute Cadmium Stress Prior to Acclimation in Arabidopsis thaliana

Journal Contribution - Journal Article

The toxic metal cadmium (Cd) is a major soil pollutant. Knowledge on the acute Cd-induced stress response is required to better understand the triggers and sequence of events that precede plant acclimation. Therefore, we aimed to identify the pressure points of Cd stress using a short-term exposure setup ranging from 0 h to 24 h. Acute responses related to glutathione (GSH), hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2), 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC), ethylene and the oxidative challenge were studied at metabolite and/or transcript level in roots and leaves of Arabidopsis thaliana either exposed or not to 5 µM Cd. Cadmium rapidly induced root GSH depletion, which might serve as an alert response and modulator of H 2 O 2 signalling. Concomitantly, a stimulation of root ACC levels was observed. Leaf responses were delayed and did not involve GSH depletion. After 24 h, a defined oxidative challenge became apparent, which was most pronounced in the leaves and concerted with a strong induction of leaf ACC synthesis. We suggest that root GSH depletion is required for a proper alert response rather than being a merely adverse effect. Furthermore, we propose that roots serve as command centre via a.o. root-derived ACC/ethylene to engage the leaves in a proper stress response.
Journal: INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
ISSN: 1661-6596
Issue: 17
Volume: 21
Publication year:2020
Keywords:Arabidopsis thaliana, cadmium, acute responses, glutathione, hydrogen peroxide, 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid, ethylene, oxidative challenge
BOF-keylabel:yes
IOF-keylabel:yes
BOF-publication weight:1
CSS-citation score:1
Authors from:Higher Education
Accessibility:Open