Propidium iodide competes with Ca(2+) to label pectin in pollen tubes and Arabidopsis root hairs.

We have used propidium iodide (PI) to investigate the dynamic properties of the primary cell wall at the apex of Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) root hairs and pollen tubes and in lily (Lilium formosanum) pollen tubes. Our results show that in root hairs, as in pollen tubes, oscillatory peaks in PI fluorescence precede growth rate oscillations. Pectin forms the primary component of the cell wall at the tip of both root hairs and pollen tubes. Given the electronic structure of PI, we investigated whether PI binds to pectins in a manner analogous to Ca(2+) binding. We first show that Ca(2+) is able to abrogate PI growth inhibition in a dose-dependent manner. PI fluorescence itself also relies directly on the amount of Ca(2+) in the growth solution. Exogenous pectin methyl esterase treatment of pollen tubes, which demethoxylates pectins, freeing more Ca(2+)-binding sites, leads to a dramatic increase in PI fluorescence. Treatment with pectinase leads to a corresponding decrease in fluorescence. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that PI binds to demethoxylated pectins. Unlike other pectin stains, PI at low yet useful concentration is vital and specifically does not alter the tip-focused Ca(2+) gradient or growth oscillations. These data suggest that pectin secretion at the apex of tip-growing plant cells plays a critical role in regulating growth, and PI represents an excellent tool for examining the role of pectin and of Ca(2+) in tip growth.