Arabidopsis Qc-SNARE gene AtSFT12 is involved in salt and osmotic stress responses and Na(+) accumulation in vacuoles.

KEY MESSAGE: AtSFT12, an Arabidopsis Qc-SNARE protein, is localized to Golgi organelles and is involved in salt and osmotic stress responses via accumulation of Na (+) in vacuoles. To reduce the detrimental effects of environmental stresses, plants have evolved many defense mechanisms. Here, we identified an Arabidopsis Qc-SNARE gene, AtSFT12, involved in salt and osmotic stress responses using an activation-tagging method. Both activation-tagged plants and overexpressing transgenic plants (OXs) of the AtSFT12 gene were tolerant to high concentrations of NaCl, LiCl, and mannitol, whereas loss-of-function mutants were sensitive to NaCl, LiCl, and mannitol. AtSFT12 transcription increased under NaCl, ABA, cold, and mannitol stresses but not MV treatment. GFP-fusion AtSFT12 protein was juxtaposed with Golgi marker, implying that its function is associated with Golgi-mediated transport. Quantitative measurement of Na(+) using induced coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy revealed that AtSFT12 OXs accumulated significantly more Na(+) than WT plants. In addition, Na(+)-dependent fluorescence analysis of Sodium Green showed comparatively higher Na(+) accumulation in vacuoles of AtSFT12 OX cells than in those of WT plant cells after salt treatments. Taken together, our findings suggest that AtSTF12, a Golgi Qc-SNARE protein, plays an important role in salt and osmotic stress responses and functions in the salt stress response via sequestration of Na(+) in vacuoles.