The CATION CALCIUM EXCHANGER 4 (CCX4) regulates LRX1-related root hair development through Ca2+ homeostasis
Authors: Hou, X., Tortora, G., Herger, A., Buratti, S., Dobrev, P. I., Vaculikov, R., Lacek, J., Sotiropoulos, A. G., Kadler, G., Schaufelberger, M., Candeo, A., Bassi, A., Wicker, T., Costa, A., Ringli, C.
The study identified a suppressor mutation (sune42) in the Golgi-localized Ca2+ transporter CCX4 that alleviates the dominant‑negative root hair phenotype caused by the extensin‑less LRX1ΔE14 protein in Arabidopsis. Detailed Ca2+ imaging showed that LRX1ΔE14 disrupts tip‑focused cytoplasmic Ca2+ oscillations, a defect rescued by the sune42 mutation, highlighting the role of Golgi‑mediated Ca2+ homeostasis in root hair growth.
The study used transcriptomic and lipidomic profiling to investigate how chia (Salvia hispanica) leaves respond to short‑term (3 h) and prolonged (27 h) heat stress at 38 °C, revealing rapid activation of calcium‑signaling and heat‑shock pathways and reversible changes in triacylglycerol levels. Nearly all heat‑responsive genes returned to baseline expression after 24 h recovery, highlighting robust thermotolerance mechanisms that could inform improvement of other oilseed crops.
The study demonstrates that constitutively active MLO (faNTA) can rescue the fer-4 root‑hair bursting and polarity defects, restoring tip‑focused cytosolic Ca2+ oscillations and ROS accumulation, highlighting a FERONIA‑MLO signaling module that governs Ca2+ influx and ROS production during root‑hair tip growth. Genetic analysis of mlo15-4 further confirms MLO15 as a key regulator of these Ca2+ and ROS dynamics. The findings suggest MLO proteins act downstream of FER to coordinate calcium and ROS signals essential for root‑hair integrity.
Using an Arabidopsis line expressing the CBL1‑mRuby2‑GCaMP6s calcium reporter, the study uncovered distinct calcium signatures in intact root tissues when exposed to high (5 mM) and low (0.25 mM) nitrate concentrations. Root hairs displayed prominent calcium waves and spikes, while non‑hair epidermal cells showed asynchronous or absent responses, indicating cell‑type‑specific and nitrate‑concentration‑dependent calcium signaling.
The study shows that the mechanosensitive ion channel PIEZO in Arabidopsis thaliana regulates root elongation in response to magnetic fields and blue light, with mutant plants displaying significantly shorter roots under these conditions. PIEZO expression is up‑regulated by a leaf‑derived blue‑light signal in the presence of a magnetic field, influencing calcium efflux and auxin transport via interactions with PIN3, PIN6 and PIN7, and requiring the blue‑light receptors CRY1 and CRY2. Transcriptome analysis reveals that PIEZO integrates multiple hormonal and microRNA pathways, including miR5648‑5p‑mediated negative regulation, to coordinate these environmental responses.