Cytosolic activity of the gibberellin receptor GIBBERELLIN INSENSITIVE DWARF1A

Arabidopsis has three gibberellin receptors, GIBBERELLIN INSENSITIVE DWARF1 A (GID1A), GID1B and GID1C. All GID1s are localized to the nucleus but have also been detected in the cytoplasm. Since other major gibberellin signaling components have been localized to the nucleus, the current model suggests that gibberellin perception and signaling is nuclear. In this work we investigated whether GID1A can perceive gibberellin and initiate a signaling cascade in the cytosol. We have generated transgenic plants expressing GID1A fused to green florescence protein (GFP) and either a nuclear export signal (NES) or a nuclear localization signal (NLS), in the background of the gid1a gid1c (gid1ac) double mutant. Analyses by confocal microscopy confirmed the localization of GFP-GID1A-NES only in the cytosol and of GFP-GID1A-NLS only in the nucleus. Surprisingly, both recombinant proteins were able to complement the gid1ac mutation and to restore growth and responsiveness to gibberellin. However, transgenic seeds and seedlings expressing GFP-GID1A-NLS were more sensitive to gibberellin than those expressing GFP-GID1A-NES. The results of this study suggest that GID1A can bind gibberellin in the cytosol to initiate gibberellin signaling and responses. It is possible that activated cytosolic GID1A interacts with DELLA proteins before they enter the nucleus and induces a conformational transition that leads to DELLA's deactivation or degradation in the nucleus.