Viviana Martins1, Filipa Carneiro2, Carlos Conde3,4, Mariana Sottomayor5,6, Hernâni Gerós2,7,8. 1. Centro de Investigação e de Tecnologias Agro-ambientais e Biológicas, CITAB-UMinho Pole, Departamento de Biologia, Escola de Ciências, Universidade do Minho, Braga, Portugal. vmartins@bio.uminho.pt. 2. Centro de Investigação e de Tecnologias Agro-ambientais e Biológicas, CITAB-UMinho Pole, Departamento de Biologia, Escola de Ciências, Universidade do Minho, Braga, Portugal. 3. i3S-Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal. 4. IBMC, Instituto de Biologia Molecular e Celular, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal. 5. CIBIO-InBIO, Universidade do Porto, Campus de Vairão, Rua Padre Armando Quintas, Vairão, Portugal. 6. Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal. 7. Centro de Biologia Molecular e Ambiental (CBMA), Departamento de Biologia, Escola de Ciências, Universidade do Minho, Braga, Portugal. 8. Centro de Engenharia Biológica (CEB), Universidade do Minho, Braga, Portugal.
Abstract
MAIN CONCLUSION: The grapevine VvCAX3 mediates calcium transport in the vacuole and is mostly expressed in green grape berries and upregulated by Ca 2+ , Na + and methyl jasmonate. Calcium is an essential plant nutrient with important regulatory and structural roles in the berries of grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.). On the other hand, the proton-cation exchanger CAX proteins have been shown to impact Ca2+ homeostasis with important consequences for fruit integrity and resistance to biotic/abiotic stress. Here, the CAX gene found in transcriptomic databases as having one of the highest expressions in grapevine tissues, VvCAX3, was cloned and functionally characterized. Heterologous expression in yeast showed that a truncated version of VvCAX3 lacking its NNR autoinhibitory domain (sCAX3) restored the ability of the yeast strain to grow in 100-200 mM Ca2+, demonstrating a role in Ca2+ transport. The truncated VvCAX3 was further shown to be involved in the transport of Na+, Li+, Mn2+ and Cu2+ in yeast cells. Subcellular localization studies using fluorescently tagged proteins confirmed VvCAX3 as a tonoplast transporter. VvCAX3 is expressed in grapevine stems, leaves, roots, and berries, especially at pea size, decreasing gradually throughout development, in parallel with the pattern of calcium accumulation in the fruit. The transcript abundance of VvCAX3 was shown to be regulated by methyl jasmonate (MeJA), Ca2+, and Na+ in grape cell suspensions, and the VvCAX3 promotor contains several predicted cis-acting elements related to developmental and stress response processes. As a whole, the results obtained add new insights on the mechanisms involved in calcium homeostasis and intracellular compartmentation in grapevine, and indicate that VvCAX3 may be an interesting target towards the development of strategies for enhancement of grape berry properties.
MAIN CONCLUSION: The grapevine VvCAX3 mediates calcium transport in the vacuole and is mostly expressed in green grape berries and upregulated by Ca 2+ , Na + and methyl jasmonate. Calcium is an essential plant nutrient with important regulatory and structural roles in the berries of grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.). On the other hand, the proton-cation exchanger CAX proteins have been shown to impact Ca2+ homeostasis with important consequences for fruit integrity and resistance to biotic/abiotic stress. Here, the CAX gene found in transcriptomic databases as having one of the highest expressions in grapevine tissues, VvCAX3, was cloned and functionally characterized. Heterologous expression in yeast showed that a truncated version of VvCAX3 lacking its NNR autoinhibitory domain (sCAX3) restored the ability of the yeast strain to grow in 100-200 mM Ca2+, demonstrating a role in Ca2+ transport. The truncated VvCAX3 was further shown to be involved in the transport of Na+, Li+, Mn2+ and Cu2+ in yeast cells. Subcellular localization studies using fluorescently tagged proteins confirmed VvCAX3 as a tonoplast transporter. VvCAX3 is expressed in grapevine stems, leaves, roots, and berries, especially at pea size, decreasing gradually throughout development, in parallel with the pattern of calcium accumulation in the fruit. The transcript abundance of VvCAX3 was shown to be regulated by methyl jasmonate (MeJA), Ca2+, and Na+ in grape cell suspensions, and the VvCAX3 promotor contains several predicted cis-acting elements related to developmental and stress response processes. As a whole, the results obtained add new insights on the mechanisms involved in calcium homeostasis and intracellular compartmentation in grapevine, and indicate that VvCAX3 may be an interesting target towards the development of strategies for enhancement of grape berry properties.
Authors: Jon K Pittman; Toshiro Shigaki; Joy L Marshall; Jay L Morris; Ning-Hui Cheng; Kendal D Hirschi Journal: Plant Mol Biol Date: 2005-04-07 Impact factor: 4.076
Authors: Rafael Catala; Elisa Santos; Jose M Alonso; Joseph R Ecker; Jose M Martinez-Zapater; Julio Salinas Journal: Plant Cell Date: 2003-11-20 Impact factor: 11.277