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02:02Responses to Salt Stress
Salt stress—which can be triggered by high salt concentrations in a plant’s environment—can significantly affect plant growth and crop production by influencing photosynthesis and the absorption of water and nutrients.
02:12Short-distance Transport of Resources
Short-distance transport refers to transport that occurs over a distance of just 2-3 cells, crossing the plasma membrane in the process. Small uncharged molecules, such as oxygen, carbon dioxide, and water, can diffuse across the plasma membrane on their own. In contrast, ions and larger molecules require the assistance of transport proteins due to their charge or size. Transport across membranes also occurs within individual cells, playing a variety of essential roles for the plant as a whole.
02:34Water and Mineral Acquisition
Specialized tissues in plant roots have evolved to capture water, minerals, and some ions from the soil. Roots exhibit a variety of branching patterns that facilitate this process. The outermost root cells have specialized structures called root hairs that increase the root surface, thus increasing soil contact. Water can passively cross into roots, as the concentration of water in the soil is higher than that of the root tissue. Minerals, in contrast, are actively transported into root cells.
01:32Secondary Active Transport
One example of how cells use the energy contained in electrochemical gradients is demonstrated by glucose transport into cells. The ion vital to this process is sodium (Na+), which is typically present in higher concentrations extracellularly than in the cytosol. Such a concentration difference is due, in part, to the action of an enzyme "pump" embedded in the cellular membrane that actively expels Na+ from a cell. Importantly, as this pump contributes to the high concentration of...
01:55Secondary Active Transport
One example of how cells use the energy contained in electrochemical gradients is demonstrated by glucose transport into cells. The ion vital to this process is sodium (Na+), which is typically present in higher concentrations extracellularly than in the cytosol. Such a concentration difference is due, in part, to the action of an enzyme “pump” embedded in the cellular membrane that actively expels Na+ from a cell. Importantly, as this pump contributes to the high concentration of...
01:32Secondary Active Transport
One example of how cells use the energy contained in electrochemical gradients is demonstrated by glucose transport into cells. The ion vital to this process is sodium (Na+), which is typically present in higher concentrations extracellularly than in the cytosol. Such a concentration difference is due, in part, to the action of an enzyme "pump" embedded in the cellular membrane that actively expels Na+ from a cell. Importantly, as this pump contributes to the high concentration of...
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Published on: August 22, 2014
High-affinity sodium uptake in land plants.
Rosario Haro1, María A Bañuelos, Alonso Rodríguez-Navarro
1Centro de Biotecnología y Genómica de Plantas, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain.
Plant & Cell Physiology
|November 27, 2009
Summary
High-affinity sodium (Na+) uptake is common in land plants, but typically not mediated by HKT transporters, except in a few grass species.
Area of Science:
- Plant Physiology
- Molecular Biology
- Biochemistry
Background:
- High-affinity sodium (Na+) uptake is crucial for plant survival but poorly understood in most species.
- The role of High-Affinity Potassium Transporter (HKT) proteins in Na+ transport is known in few plants.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the characteristics of high-affinity Na+ uptake across diverse land plants.
- To determine the involvement of HKT transporters in mediating this uptake mechanism.
Main Methods:
- Analyzed Na+ content in wild mosses.
- Performed K+ and Na+ uptake experiments in micromolar concentrations using Physcomitrella patens and Riccia fluitans.
- Studied a P. patens Deltahkt1 mutant and identified HKT genes in Selaginella moellendorffii.
Main Results:
- High-affinity Na+ uptake is prevalent in most land plants studied.
- HKT transporters likely mediate high-affinity Na+ uptake in rice and specific grass tribes (Triticeae, Aveneae).
- In many species, high-affinity Na+ uptake involves transporters with distinct K+ and Ba2+ response profiles compared to HKTs.
Conclusions:
- High-affinity Na+ uptake is a widespread physiological process in land plants.
- HKT transporters are involved in high-affinity Na+ uptake in a limited number of plant species.
- Alternative transporter systems mediate high-affinity Na+ uptake in the majority of land plants.