TIR1/AFB-Aux/IAA auxin perception mediates rapid cell wall acidification and growth of Arabidopsis hypocotyls

  1. Matyáš Fendrych
  2. Jeffrey Leung
  3. Jiří Friml  Is a corresponding author
  1. Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Austria
  2. Institut Jean-Pierre Bourgin, UMR1318 INRA-AgroParisTech, France

Abstract

Despite being composed of immobile cells, plants reorient along directional stimuli. The hormone auxin is redistributed in stimulated organs leading to differential growth and bending. Auxin application triggers rapid cell wall acidification and elongation of aerial organs of plants, but the molecular players mediating these effects are still controversial. Here we use genetically-encoded pH and auxin signaling sensors, pharmacological and genetic manipulations available for Arabidopsis etiolated hypocotyls to clarify how auxin is perceived and the downstream growth executed. We show that auxin-induced acidification occurs by local activation of H+-ATPases, which in the context of gravity response is restricted to the lower organ side. This auxin-stimulated acidification and growth require TIR1/AFB-Aux/IAA nuclear auxin perception. In addition, auxin-induced gene transcription and specifically SAUR proteins are crucial downstream mediators of this growth. Our study provides strong experimental support for the acid growth theory and clarified the contribution of the upstream auxin perception mechanisms.

Article and author information

Author details

  1. Matyáš Fendrych

    Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Klosterneuburg, Austria
    Competing interests
    The authors declare that no competing interests exist.
  2. Jeffrey Leung

    Institut Jean-Pierre Bourgin, UMR1318 INRA-AgroParisTech, Versailles, France
    Competing interests
    The authors declare that no competing interests exist.
  3. Jiří Friml

    Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Klosterneuburg, Austria
    For correspondence
    jiri.friml@ist.ac.at
    Competing interests
    The authors declare that no competing interests exist.
    ORCID icon "This ORCID iD identifies the author of this article:" 0000-0002-8302-7596

Funding

European Research Council (project ERC-2011-StG-20101109-PSDP)

  • Jiří Friml

Marie Curie Actions FP7 2007-2013 (REA grant agreement n.291734)

  • Matyáš Fendrych

The funders had no role in study design, data collection and interpretation, or the decision to submit the work for publication.

Copyright

© 2016, Fendrych et al.

This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License permitting unrestricted use and redistribution provided that the original author and source are credited.

Metrics

  • 7,300
    views
  • 1,881
    downloads
  • 170
    citations

Views, downloads and citations are aggregated across all versions of this paper published by eLife.

Download links

A two-part list of links to download the article, or parts of the article, in various formats.

Downloads (link to download the article as PDF)

Open citations (links to open the citations from this article in various online reference manager services)

Cite this article (links to download the citations from this article in formats compatible with various reference manager tools)

  1. Matyáš Fendrych
  2. Jeffrey Leung
  3. Jiří Friml
(2016)
TIR1/AFB-Aux/IAA auxin perception mediates rapid cell wall acidification and growth of Arabidopsis hypocotyls
eLife 5:e19048.
https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.19048

Share this article

https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.19048

Further reading

    1. Cell Biology
    Yan Song, Linda J Fothergill ... Gene W Yeo
    Research Article

    Dynamic interactions between gut mucosal cells and the external environment are essential to maintain gut homeostasis. Enterochromaffin (EC) cells transduce both chemical and mechanical signals and produce 5-hydroxytryptamine to mediate disparate physiological responses. However, the molecular and cellular basis for functional diversity of ECs remains to be adequately defined. Here, we integrated single-cell transcriptomics with spatial image analysis to identify 14 EC clusters that are topographically organized along the gut. Subtypes predicted to be sensitive to the chemical environment and mechanical forces were identified that express distinct transcription factors and hormones. A Piezo2+ population in the distal colon was endowed with a distinctive neuronal signature. Using a combination of genetic, chemogenetic, and pharmacological approaches, we demonstrated Piezo2+ ECs are required for normal colon motility. Our study constructs a molecular map for ECs and offers a framework for deconvoluting EC cells with pleiotropic functions.

    1. Cell Biology
    2. Developmental Biology
    Sarah Y Coomson, Salil A Lachke
    Insight

    A study in mice reveals key interactions between proteins involved in fibroblast growth factor signaling and how they contribute to distinct stages of eye lens development.