A balanced JA/ABA status may correlate with adaptation to osmotic stress in Vitis cells

Water-related stress is considered a major type of plant stress. Osmotic stress, in particular, represents the common part of all water-related stresses. Therefore, plants have evolved different adaptive mechanisms to cope with osmotic-related disturbances. In the current work, two grapevine cell lines that differ in their osmotic adaptability, Vitis rupestris and Vitis riparia, were investigated under mannitol-induced osmotic stress. To dissect signals that lead to adaptability from those related to sensitivity, osmotic-triggered responses with respect to jasmonic acid (JA) and its active form JA-Ile, abscisic acid (ABA), and stilbene compounds, as well as the expression of their related genes were observed. In addition, the transcript levels of the cellular homeostasis gene NHX1 were examined. The data are discussed with a hypothesis suggesting that a balance of JA and ABA status might correlate with cellular responses, either guiding cells to sensitivity or to progress toward adaptation.