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A B S T R A C T B O O K – A B S T R A C T S O F P O S T E R S
Sabine Kunz, Edouard Pesquet, Leszek A. Kleczkowski
Umeå Plant Science Centre, Department of Plant Physiology, Umeå University, Sweden
E-mail: sabine.kunz@plantphys.umu.se
The ability of a plant to cope with different environmental factors depends on its energy state. In plants,
the energy available for each cell underlies a continuous fluctuation, which is influenced by carbon
assimilation and respiration. The response of a plant to available carbohydrates (CH), the main source of
energy, is partly coordinated through cell signaling by specific changes in gene expression. These are
determined by the interaction of transcription factors (TF) with cis-regulatory DNA elements in promoters
of responsive genes. Here we describe experimental approaches to verify the functionality of the three
insilico predicted cis-elements SUC/ROS 3, 5 and 6, which are likely to be involved in sucrose-dependent cellsignaling.
The use of A. thaliana cell cultures, grown on xylose as carbon source, allows us to distinguish the
response of the cells to different CH signals. This set-up, applied to cells transformed with promoterreporter
gene constructs that bear the cis-elements in both the forward and reverse orientation in a native
as well as synthetic environment, is a valuable tool to determine the involvement of these cis-elements in
the different transcriptional responses in the adaptation to changes of available CH.
ENDOGENOUS REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES (ROS) STATUS AND CELL DEATH IN NITRIC
OXIDE (NO) MUTANTS UNDER COPPER EXCESS
Zsuzsanna Kolbert, Andrea Pető, Nóra Lehotai, László Erdei
Department of Plant Biology, Faculty of Science and Informatics, University of Szeged, Hungary
E-mail: kolzsu@bio.u-szeged.hu
Enhanced ROS production is associated with abiotic stresses, and NO as a general plant signal plays a role in
cell death induction. The possible relationship between ROS and NO was investigated in copper-treated
wild type (WT), NO-overproducer (nox1) and -deficient mutant (nia1nia2, nia1nia2noa1-2) Arabidopsis by
microscopic methods. Seven-day-old plants were grown in MS medium supplemented with 0, 5, 25 and 50
µM CuSO4. In the elongation zone (EZ) of wild type roots the levels of NO and superoxide anion (O2 .- )
decreased, peroxynitrite (ONOO - ) enhanced as the effect of Cu 2+ exposure, which suggests the reaction
between NO and O2 .- to produce ONOO - . The level of ROS was also increased by Cu 2+ , which can be partly
responsible for oxidative cell death. In roots of NO-overproducer and -deficient plants the copper-induced
alterations in the ROS metabolism and the degree of cell death was more pronounced compared to WT.
Based on our results it can be stated, that under Cu 2+ excess NO acts as an antioxidant by eliminating O2 .-
and yielding the less toxic ONOO - . The copper-induced cell death is strictly regulated by endogenous NO
status: NO content in the root being over or under the optimal level intensifies cell death process.
PLASMA MEMBRANE AQUAPORIN PIP2;3 IS RELATED TO HEAT STRESS RESPONSE IN
ARABIDOPSIS THALIANA
Ayako Tsuchihira 1 , Yuko Hanba 2 , Masayoshi Maeshima 1
1 Graduate School of Bioagricultural Sciences, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan
2 Kyoto Institute of Technology, Kyoto, Japan
E-mail: tsuchihira.ayako@f.mbox.nagoya-u.ac.jp
Plants have a large protein family of aquaporin, which facilitate membrane transport of water and other
small molecules. Arabidopsis thaliana contains 35 aquaporins divided into four subfamilies: PIP, TIP, NIP and
SIP. Plasma membrane aquaporins (PIPs) play a key role of intercellular water transport. PIPs have been
reported to response to abiotic stresses. We focused on the physiological function of PIPs under high
temperature conditions.
Expression of 13 PIP genes was quantified by qRT-PCR in A. thaliana. Among them, only PIP2;3 transcript
level was transiently increased when the temperature raised to 36°C . The increased level of mRNA was
rapidly decreased within 2 hr even at high temperatures. PIP2;3 promoter-GUS fusions revealed the tissuespecific
expression under high temperature. After heat stress, PIP2;3 was predominantly expressed in the
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