Phosphatidic acid regulates microtubule organization by interacting with MAP65-1 in response to salt stress in Arabidopsis.

Membrane lipids play fundamental structural and regulatory roles in cell metabolism and signaling. Here, we report that phosphatidic acid (PA), a product of phospholipase D (PLD), regulates MAP65-1, a microtubule-associated protein, in response to salt stress. Knockout of the PLDα1 gene resulted in greater NaCl-induced disorganization of microtubules, which could not be recovered during or after removal of the stress. Salt affected the association of MAP65-1 with microtubules, leading to microtubule disorganization in pldα1cells, which was alleviated by exogenous PA. PA bound to MAP65-1, increasing its activity in enhancing microtubule polymerization and bundling. Overexpression of MAP65-1 improved salt tolerance of Arabidopsis thaliana cells. Mutations of eight amino acids in MAP65-1 led to the loss of its binding to PA, microtubule-bundling activity, and promotion of salt tolerance. The pldα1 map65-1 double mutant showed greater sensitivity to salt stress than did either single mutant. These results suggest that PLDα1-derived PA binds to MAP65-1, thus mediating microtubule stabilization and salt tolerance. The identification of MAP65-1 as a target of PA reveals a functional connection between membrane lipids and the cytoskeleton in environmental stress signaling.