In the light of stomatal opening: new insights into 'the Watergate'

Stomata can be regarded as hydraulically driven valves in the leaf surface, which open to allow CO2 uptake and close to prevent excessive loss of water. Movement of these 'Watergates' is regulated by environmental conditions, such as light, CO2 and humidity. Guard cells can sense environmental conditions and function as motor cells within the stomatal complex. Stomatal movement results from the transport of K+ salts across the guard cell membranes. In this review, we discuss the biophysical principles and mechanisms of stomatal movement and relate these to ion transport at the plasma membrane and vacuolar membrane. Studies with isolated guard cells, combined with recordings on single guard cells in intact plants, revealed that light stimulates stomatal opening via blue light-specific and photosynthetic-active radiation-dependent pathways. In addition, guard cells sense changes in air humidity and the water status of distant tissues via the stress hormone abscisic acid (ABA). Guard cells thus provide an excellent system to study cross-talk, as multiple signaling pathways induce both short- and long-term responses in these sensory cells.     

K+ transport properties of K+ channels in the plasma membrane of Vicia faba guard cells

Electrical properties of the plasma membrane of guard cell protoplasts isolated from stomates of Vicia faba leaves were studied by application of the whole-cell configuration of the patch-clamp technique. The two types of K+ currents that have recently been identified in guard cells may allow efflux of K+ during stomatal closing, and uptake of K+ during stomatal opening (Schroeder et al., 1987). A detailed characterization of ion transport properties of the inward-rectifying (IK+,in) and the outward-rectifying (IK+,out) K+ conductance is presented here. The permeability ratios of IK+,in and IK+,out currents for K+ over monovalent alkali metal ions were determined. The resulting permeability sequences (PK+ greater than PRb+ greater than PNa+ greater than PLi+ much greater than PCs+) corresponded closely to the ion specificity of guard cell movements in V. faba. Neither K+ currents exhibited significant inactivation when K+ channels were activated for prolonged periods (greater than 10 min). The absence of inactivation may permit long durations of K+ fluxes, which occur during guard cell movements. Activation potentials of inward K+ currents were not shifted when external K+ concentrations were changed. This differs strongly from the behavior of inward-rectifying K+ channels in animal tissue. Blue light and fusicoccin induce hyperpolarization by stimulation of an electrogenic pump. From slow-whole-cell recordings it was concluded that electrogenic pumps require cytoplasmic substrates for full activation and that the magnitude of the pump current is sufficient to drive K+ uptake through IK+,in channels. First, direct evidence was gained for the hypothesis that IK+,in channels are a molecular pathway for K+ accumulation by the finding that IK+,in was blocked by Al3+ ions, which are known to inhibit stomatal opening but not closing. The results presented in this study strongly support a prominent role for IK+,in and IK+,out channels in K+ transport across the plasma membrane of guard cells.     

Roles of ion channels and transporters in guard cell signal transduction

Stomatal complexes consist of pairs of guard cells and the pore they enclose. Reversible changes in guard cell volume alter the aperture of the pore and provide the major regulatory mechanism for control of gas exchange between the plant and the environment. Stomatal movement is facilitated by the activity of ion channels and ion transporters found in the plasma membrane and vacuolar membrane of guard cells. Progress in recent years has elucidated the molecular identities of many guard cell transport proteins, and described their modulation by various cellular signal transduction components during stomatal opening and closure prompted by environmental and endogenous stimuli.     

Stomatal responses to light and leaf-air water vapor pressure difference show similar kinetics in sugarcane and soybean

Stomatal responses to light and humidity (vapor pressure difference, VPD) are important determinants of stomatal conductance. Stomatal movements induced by light are the result of a transduction of the light stimulus into modulated ion fluxes in guard cells and concomitant osmotic adjustments and turgor changes. It is generally assumed that this transduction process is a general stomatal property, with different environmental stimuli integrated into guard cell metabolism through their modulation of ion fluxes. In contrast with this notion, the VPD response, which is unique because both its triggering signal and the turgor changes required for aperture modulations involve water molecules, has been considered to be hydropassive and thus independent of guard cell metabolism. We used a kinetic approach to compare the light and VPD responses in order to test the hypothesis that hydropassive changes in guard cell turgor could be faster than the metabolism-dependent light responses. Changes in stomatal conductance in intact leaves of sugarcane and soybean were measured after application of step changes in VPD and in light. In spite of a 5-fold difference in overall rates between the two species, the response rates following light or VPD steps were similar. Although a coincidental kinetic similarity between two mechanistically different responses cannot be ruled out, the data suggest a common mechanism controlling stomatal movements, with the VPD stimulus inducing metabolic modulations of ion fluxes analogous to other stomatal responses.     

蚕豆气孔运动中水通道和离子通道的作用和地位的探讨

 用不同浓度HgCl2、LaCl3和TEACl (Tetraethylammonium chloride)处理蚕豆(Vicia faba)叶片下表皮条,发现HgCl2能显著抑制气孔开闭,Ca2+通道阻塞剂LaCl3或K+通道阻塞剂TEACl处理也都有一定程度的抑制。三者的作用效果HgCl2>>LaCl3>TEACl。用HgCl2+LaCl3、HgCl2+TEACl或HgCl2+LaCl3+TEACl处理,则气孔开闭运动几乎完全被抑制。表明：蚕豆气孔运动中,保卫细胞胀缩主要是水通道直接参与保卫细胞与叶肉细胞间水流的调节引起的,离子通道起间接次要作用,二者共同引起保卫细胞体积变化而导致气孔开闭。     

Anion channels and hormone signalling in plant cells

Current evidences support a central role in signal transduction and turgor regulation for plasma membrane anion channels. The present review focuses on these channels as putative targets for plant hormones. Various approaches have been developed to investigate the contribution of anion channels to hormone responses at the level of integrated responses of intact cells or organs, or to study directly the hormonal regulation of anion channels at the membrane level. These approaches are mainly discussed for two biological models, stomatal guard cells and hypocotyl or coleoptile cells, both cell types being equipped with several types of anion channels. Membrane potential and anion flux measurements, together with pharmacological studies using anion channel inhibitors, reveal that anion permeabilities are involved in the responses of guard cells or hypocotyl cells to abscisic acid and/or auxin. In a few instances, a modulation of anion channel activity can be detected in voltage-clamp or patch-clamp experiments. From these data and other studies, anion channel activation seems to constitute a very early step in many transduction cascades within response pathways to endogenous hormonal signals, but also to abiotic and biotic environmental signals such as light or molecules involved in plant-pathogen interactions. This points to plasma membrane anion channels as major actors in plant signalling networks.     

Are diurnal patterns of stomatal movement the result of alternating metabolism of endogenous guard cell ABA and accumulation of ABA delivered to the apoplast around guard cells by transpiration?

Abscisic acid (ABA) prevents opening of closed stomata and causes open stomata to close. A dual-source model is proposed linking ABA to diurnal stomatal movements. Darkness would favour guard cell biosynthesis of endogenous ABA and disfavour ABA catabolism. At first light, xanthophyll cycling, isomerization of ABA precursors, and activation of a cytochrome P450 mono-oxygenase (CytP450) would deplete endogenous guard cell ABA. The NADPH-requiring CytP450 would be activated by elevated O2 and reduced CO2 concentrations resulting from mesophyll photosynthesis. An increased O2-to-CO2 ratio would limit the Calvin cycle in guard cells, diverting NADPH produced by photosynthetic electron transport to the cytosol where, along with elevated O2, it would activate CytP450. Depletion of endogenous ABA would liberate guard cells to extrude protons and accumulate the ions and water needed to increase guard cell turgor and open stomata. By midday, stomata would be regulated by steady-state concentrations of ABA delivered to the apoplast around guard cells by transpiration. In temperate conditions, ABA would reach concentrations high enough to trigger ion efflux from guard cells, but too low to defeat the accumulation of sugars used to maintain opening. In dry conditions, ABA would reach effective concentrations by midday, high enough to trigger ion efflux and inhibit sugar uptake, reducing apertures for the rest of the day. At sunset, conditions would again favour biosynthesis and disfavour catabolism of endogenous guard cell ABA. The model can be used to reconcile proposed cellular mechanisms for guard cell signal transduction with patterns of stomatal movements in leaves.     

The coronatine-insensitive 1 mutation reveals the hormonal signaling interaction between abscisic acid and methyl jasmonate in Arabidopsis guard cells. Specific impairment of ion channel activation and second messenger production

Methyl jasmonate (MeJA) elicits stomatal closing similar to abscisic acid (ABA), but whether the two compounds use similar or different signaling mechanisms in guard cells remains to be clarified. We investigated the effects of MeJA and ABA on second messenger production and ion channel activation in guard cells of wild-type Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) and MeJA-insensitive coronatine-insensitive 1 (coi1) mutants. The coi1 mutation impaired MeJA-induced stomatal closing but not ABA-induced stomatal closing. MeJA as well as ABA induced production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and nitric oxide (NO) in wild-type guard cells, whereas MeJA did not induce production of ROS and NO in coi1 guard cells. The experiments using an inhibitor and scavengers demonstrated that both ROS and NO are involved in MeJA-induced stomatal closing as well as ABA-induced stomatal closing. Not only ABA but also MeJA activated slow anion channels and Ca(2+) permeable cation channels in the plasma membrane of wild-type guard cell protoplasts. However, in coi1 guard cell protoplasts, MeJA did not elicit either slow anion currents or Ca(2+) permeable cation currents, but ABA activated both types of ion channels. Furthermore, to elucidate signaling interaction between ABA and MeJA in guard cells, we examined MeJA signaling in ABA-insensitive mutant ABA-insensitive 2 (abi2-1), whose ABA signal transduction cascade has some disruption downstream of ROS production and NO production. MeJA also did not induce stomatal closing but stimulated production of ROS and NO in abi2-1. These results suggest that MeJA triggers stomatal closing via a receptor distinct from the ABA receptor and that the coi1 mutation disrupts MeJA signaling upstream of the blanch point of ABA signaling and MeJA signaling in Arabidopsis guard cells.     

Anion channels as central mechanisms for signal transduction in guard cells and putative functions in roots for plant-soil interactions

In higher plants anion channels have recently been suggested to play key roles in controlling cellular functions, including turgor- and osmoregulation, stomatal movements, anion transport, signal transduction and possibly also signal propagation. In guard cells and roots, physiological functions of anion channels have been proposed which will be discussed here. In initial investigations it was proposed that anion channels in the plasma membrane of guard cells provide a prominent control mechanism for stomatal closing. The proposed model suggests that anion channel activation and the resulting anion efflux from guard cells cause membrane depolarization, thereby driving K⁺ efflux through outward-rectifying K⁺ channels required for stomatal closing. This article provides a brief review of new and recent insights into the molecular properties and cell biological functions of anion channels in guard cells. Furthermore, recently implicated putative functions of anion channels in roots during salt stress, xylem loading and Al³⁺ tolerance are addressed.     

The chemiosmotic model of stomatal opening revisited

Stomata are light‐activated biological valves in the otherwise gas‐impermeable epidermis of aerial organs of higher plants. Stomata often regulate rates of photosynthesis and transpiration in ways that optimize whole‐plant carbon gain against water loss. Each stoma is flanked by a pair of opposing guard cells. Stomatal opening occurs by light‐activated increases in the turgor pressure of guard cells, which causes them to change shape so that the stomatal pore between them widens. These increases in turgor pressure oppose increases in cellular osmotic pressure that result from uptake of K⁺. K⁺ uptake occurs by a chemiosmotic mechanism in response to light‐activated extrusion of H⁺ outward across the plasma membrane of the guard cell. The initial changes in cellular membrane potential lead to the opening of inward‐rectifying K⁺ channels, after which K⁺ is taken up along its electrochemical gradient. Changes in membrane potential resulting from K⁺ uptake may be balanced by accumulation of Cl^?ions by guard cells and/or by synthesis of malic acid within each cell. Malic acid also acts to buffer increases in cytosolic pH caused by H⁺ extrusion. This review describes how the application of patch‐clamp technology to guard cell protoplasts has enabled investigators to elucidate the mechanisms by which H⁺ is extruded from guard cells, the types of ion channels present in the guard cell plasma membrane, how those ion channels are regulated, and the signal transduction processes that trigger stomatal opening and closing.     

Cell type-specific regulation of ion channels within the maize stomatal complex

The stomatal complex of Zea mays is composed of two pore-forming guard cells and two adjacent subsidiary cells. For stomatal movement, potassium ions and anions are thought to shuttle between these two cell types. As potential cation transport pathways, K(+)-selective channels have already been identified and characterized in subsidiary cells and guard cells. However, so far the nature and regulation of anion channels in these cell types have remained unclear. In order to bridge this gap, we performed patch-clamp experiments with subsidiary cell and guard cell protoplasts. Voltage-independent anion channels were identified in both cell types which, surprisingly, exhibited different, cell-type specific dependencies on cytosolic Ca(2+) and pH. After impaling subsidiary cells of intact maize plants with microelectrodes and loading with BCECF [(2',7'-bis-(2-carboxyethyl)-5(and6)carboxyflurescein] as a fluorescent pH indicator, the regulation of ion channels by the cytosolic pH and the membrane voltage was further examined. Stomatal closure was found to be accompanied by an initial hyperpolarization and cytosolic acidification of subsidiary cells, while opposite responses were observed during stomatal opening. Our findings suggest that specific changes in membrane potential and cytosolic pH are likely to play a role in determining the direction and capacity of ion transport in subsidiary cells.     

The ATP binding cassette transporter AtMRP5 modulates anion and calcium channel activities in Arabidopsis guard cells

Stomatal guard cells control CO(2) uptake and water loss between plants and the atmosphere. Stomatal closure in response to the drought stress hormone, abscisic acid (ABA), results from anion and K(+) release from guard cells. Previous studies have shown that cytosolic Ca(2+) elevation and ABA activate S-type anion channels in the plasma membrane of guard cells, leading to stomatal closure. However, membrane-bound regulators of abscisic acid signaling and guard cell anion channels remain unknown. Here we show that the ATP binding cassette (ABC) protein AtMRP5 is localized to the plasma membrane. Mutation in the AtMRP5 ABC protein impairs abscisic acid and cytosolic Ca(2+) activation of slow (S-type) anion channels in the plasma membrane of guard cells. Interestingly, atmrp5 insertion mutant guard cells also show impairment in abscisic acid activation of Ca(2+)-permeable channel currents in the plasma membrane of guard cells. These data provide evidence that the AtMRP5 ABC transporter is a central regulator of guard cell ion channel during abscisic acid and Ca(2+) signal transduction in guard cells.     

Signalling drought in guard cells

A number of environmental conditions including drought, low humidity, cold and salinity subject plants to osmotic stress. A rapid plant response to such stress conditions is stomatal closure to reduce water loss from plants. From an external stress signal to stomatal closure, many molecular components constitute a signal transduction network that couples the stimulus to the response. Numerous studies have been directed to resolving the framework and molecular details of stress signalling pathways in plants. In guard cells, studies focus on the regulation of ion channels by abscisic acid (ABA), a chemical messenger for osmotic stress. Calcium, protein kinases and phosphatases, and membrane trafficking components have been shown to play a role in ABA signalling process in guard cells. Studies also implicate ABA-independent regulation of ion channels by osmotic stress. In particular, a direct osmosensing pathway for ion channel regulation in guard cells has been identified. These pathways form a complex signalling web that monitors water status in the environment and initiates responses in stomatal movements.     

Identification of K(+) channels in the plasma membrane of maize subsidiary cells

The stomatal complex of Zea mays consists of two guard cells with the pore in between them and two flanking subsidiary cells. Both guard cells and subsidiary cells are important elements for stoma physiology because a well-coordinated transmembrane shuttle transport of potassium and chloride ions occurs between these cells during stomatal movement. To shed light upon the corresponding transport systems from subsidiary cells, subsidiary cell protoplasts were enzymatically isolated and in turn, analyzed with the patch-clamp technique. Thereby, two K(+)-selective channel types were identified in the plasma membrane of subsidiary cells. With regard to their voltage-dependent gating behavior, they may act as hyperpolarization-dependent K(+) uptake and depolarization-activated K(+) release channels during stomatal movement. Interestingly, the K(+) channels from subsidiary cells and guard cells similarly responded to membrane voltage as well as to changes in the K(+) gradient. Further, the inward- and outward-rectifying K(+) current amplitude decreased upon a rise in the intracellular free Ca(2+) level from 2 nM to the micro M-range. The results indicate that the plasma membrane of subsidiary cells and guard cells has to be inversely polarized in order to achieve the anti-parallel direction of K(+) fluxes between these cell types during stomatal movement.     

Heterotrimeric G-protein regulation of ROS signalling and calcium currents in Arabidopsis guard cells

Heterotrimeric G proteins composed of Gα, Gβ, and Gγ subunits are important signalling agents in both animals and plants. In plants, G proteins modulate numerous responses, including abscisic acid (ABA) and pathogen-associated molecular pattern (PAMP) regulation of guard cell ion channels and stomatal apertures. Previous analyses of mutants deficient in the sole canonical Arabidopsis Gα subunit, GPA1, have shown that Gα-deficient guard cells are impaired in ABA inhibition of K(+) influx channels, and in pH-independent activation of anion efflux channels. ABA-induced Ca(2+) uptake through ROS-activated Ca(2+)-permeable channels in the plasma membrane is another key component of ABA signal transduction in guard cells, but the question of whether these channels are also dependent on Gα for their ABA response has not been evaluated previously. We used two independent Arabidopsis T-DNA null mutant lines, gpa1-3 and gpa1-4, to investigate this issue. We observed that gpa1 mutants are disrupted both in ABA-induced Ca(2+)-channel activation, and in production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in response to ABA. However, in response to exogenous H(2)O(2) application, I(Ca) channels are activated normally in gpa1 guard cells. In addition, H(2)O(2) inhibition of stomatal opening and promotion of stomatal closure are not disrupted in gpa1 mutant guard cells. These data indicate that absence of GPA1 interrupts ABA signalling between ABA reception and ROS production, with a consequent impairment in Ca(2+)-channel activation.     

Ca(2+) signalling and control of guard-cell volume in stomatal movements

Stomatal guard cells are unique as a plant cell model and, because of the depth of knowledge now to hand on ion transport and its regulation, serve as an excellent model for the analysis of stimulus-response coupling in higher plants. Parallel controls - mediated by Ca(2+), H(+) protein kinases and phosphatases - regulate the gating of the K(+) and Cl(-) channels that facilitate solute flux for stomatal movements. A growing body of evidence now indicates that oscillations in the cytosolic free concentration of Ca(2+) contribute to a 'signalling cassette', which is integrated within these events through an unusual coupling with membrane voltage. Additional developments during the past two years point to events in membrane traffic that play complementary roles in stomatal control. Research in these areas, especially, is now adding entirely new dimensions to our understanding of guard cell signalling.     

Barley mildew and its elicitor chitosan promote closed stomata by stimulating guard-cell S-type anion channels

Stomatal closure is known to be associated with early defence responses of plant cells triggered by microbe-associated molecular patterns (MAMPs). However, the molecular mechanisms underlying these guard-cell responses have not yet been elucidated. We therefore studied pathogen-induced changes in ion channel activity in Hordeum vulgare guard cells. Barley mildew (Blumeria graminis) hyphae growing on leaves inhibited light-induced stomatal opening, starting at 9 h after inoculation, when appressoria had developed. Alternatively, stomatal closure was induced by nano-infusion of chitosan via open stomata into the sub-stomatal cavity. Experiments using intracellular double-barreled micro-electrodes revealed that mildew stimulated S-type (slow) anion channels in guard cells. These channels enable the efflux of anions from guard cells and also promote K(+) extrusion by altering the plasma membrane potential. Stimulation of S-type anion channels was also provoked by nano-infusion of chitosan. These data suggest that MAMPs of mildew hyphae penetrating the cuticle provoke activation of S-type anion channels in guard cells. In response, guard cells extrude K(+) salts, resulting in stomatal closure. Plasma membrane anion channels probably represent general targets of MAMP signaling in plants, as these elicitors depolarize the plasma membrane of various cell types.     

保卫细胞的ABA信号转导

植物激素脱落酸(ABA)调节植物体多种生理过程,尤其在一些逆境条件下,植物体中ABA大量合成,诱导气孔关闭,从而有效地调控植物体内的水分平衡.尽管人们对ABA诱导气孔关闭作用已得到共识,但有关信号转导的细节还很不清楚.该文简要介绍了研究气孔保卫细胞信号转导途径的相关技术以及与ABA信号转导直接相关的ABA受体、第二信使、蛋白质磷酸化和离子通道调节等方面的最新妍究进展.并在前人研究工作的基础上,勾画出气孔保卫细胞ABA、H2O2的信号转导模式图.     

Osmo-sensitive and stretch-activated calcium-permeable channels in Vicia faba guard cells are regulated by actin dynamics

In responses to a number of environmental stimuli, changes of cytoplasmic [Ca(2+)](cyt) in stomatal guard cells play important roles in regulation of stomatal movements. In this study, the osmo-sensitive and stretch-activated (SA) Ca(2+) channels in the plasma membrane of Vicia faba guard cells are identified, and their regulation by osmotic changes and actin dynamics are characterized. The identified Ca(2+) channels were activated under hypotonic conditions at both whole-cell and single-channel levels. The channels were also activated by a stretch force directly applied to the membrane patches. The channel-mediated inward currents observed under hypotonic conditions or in the presence of a stretch force were blocked by the Ca(2+) channel inhibitor Gd(3+). Disruption of actin filaments activated SA Ca(2+) channels, whereas stabilization of actin filaments blocked the channel activation induced by stretch or hypotonic treatment, indicating that actin dynamics may mediate the stretch activation of these channels. In addition, [Ca(2+)](cyt) imaging demonstrated that both the hypotonic treatment and disruption of actin filaments induced significant Ca(2+) elevation in guard cell protoplasts, which is consistent with our electrophysiological results. It is concluded that stomatal guard cells may utilize SA Ca(2+) channels as osmo sensors, by which swelling of guard cells causes elevation of [Ca(2+)](cyt) and consequently inhibits overswelling of guard cells. This SA Ca(2+) channel-mediated negative feedback mechanism may coordinate with previously hypothesized positive feedback mechanisms and regulate stomatal movement in response to environmental changes.