Calmodulin: localization in plant tissues.

Calmodulin was purified from bovine brain by preparative SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The denatured, purified calmodulin was used to immunize rabbits to produce antiserum. This antiserum was used to study the distribution of calmodulin in plant tissues by indirect immunohistochemistry. The root tips from corn seeds, oat seeds, peanuts, spaghetti squash seeds, and the terminal buds of spinach were investigated. A method for plant tissue sectioning and inhibition of endogenous peroxide activity was developed. In the corn root section, reaction product from anti-calmodulin was found mainly in the root cap cells. Lesser but significant amounts of calmodulin were localized in metaxylem elements, in some stele cells surrounding metaxylem elements, in apical initials, and in the cortical cells. Similar findings were also observed in other root tips from oat seeds, peanuts, and spaghetti squash seeds. In the terminal buds of the spinach, calmodulin-stained cells were highly concentrated in the apical meristem and leaf primordium. These findings suggest that the high concentration of calmodulin in the root cap may be important in relation to gravitropism and growth development.