Long-term root electrotropism reveals habituation and hysteresis
File(s)kiad686.pdf (985.04 KB)
Published version
Author(s)
Salvalaio, Maddalena
Sena, Giovanni
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Plant roots sense many physical and chemical cues in soil, such as gravity, humidity, light, and chemical gradients, and respond by redirecting their growth toward or away from the source of the stimulus. This process is called tropism. While gravitropism is the tendency to follow the gravitational field downwards, electrotropism is the alignment of growth with external electric fields and the induced ionic currents. Although root tropisms are at the core of their ability to explore large volumes of soil in search of water and nutrients, the molecular and physical mechanisms underlying most of them remain poorly understood. We have previously provided a quantitative characterization of root electrotropism in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) primary roots exposed for 5 h to weak electric fields, showing that auxin asymmetric distribution is not necessary for root electrotropism but that cytokinin biosynthesis is. Here, we extend that study showing that long-term electrotropism is characterized by a complex behavior. We describe overshoot and habituation as key traits of long-term root electrotropism in Arabidopsis and provide quantitative data about the role of past exposures in the response to electric fields (hysteresis). On the molecular side, we show that cytokinin, although necessary for root electrotropism, is not asymmetrically distributed during the bending. Overall, the data presented here represent a step forward toward a better understanding of the complexity of root behavior and provide a quantitative platform for future studies on the molecular mechanisms of electrotropism.
Date Issued
2024-04
Date Acceptance
2023-12-02
Citation
Plant Physiology, 2024, 194 (4), pp.2697-2708
ISSN
0032-0889
Publisher
Oxford University Press
Start Page
2697
End Page
2708
Journal / Book Title
Plant Physiology
Volume
194
Issue
4
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of American Society of Plant Biologists. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted reuse, distribution, and
reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
License URL
Identifier
https://academic.oup.com/plphys/article/194/4/2697/7503512?login=true
Publication Status
Published
Date Publish Online
2023-12-29