H+ drives ultra-fast root-to-root responses to wounding

Ducla, J.; Di Fino, L.; Mentzelopoulou, A.; Talide, L.; Besten, M.; Bernacka-Wojcik, I.; Arbring Sjöström, T.; Zahid, N.; Jämtgard, S.; Stavrinidou, E.; Niittylä, T.; Sprakel, J.; Marhavy, P.

doi:10.1101/2024.10.04.616436

bioRxiv · 10.1101/2024.10.04.616436

H+ drives ultra-fast root-to-root responses to wounding

Ducla, J.·Di Fino, L.·Mentzelopoulou, A.·Talide, L.·Besten, M.·Bernacka-Wojcik, I.·Arbring Sjöström, T.·Zahid, N.·Jämtgard, S.·Stavrinidou, E.·Niittylä, T.·Sprakel, J.·Marhavy, P.

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Abstract

The plant-to-plant communication of damage is vital for plants to mount pre-emptive defensive responses in the face of threats. A variety of threats to the well-being of plants are found below ground; yet how plant roots activate inter-plant communication is largely unclear. Here we demonstrate that a wounded root rapidly releases protons (H+), that travel faster than any other "known" soluble biochemical signal due to a specialised diffusion mechanism. Within seconds after damage, cells in neighbouring unwounded roots sense the acidification and activate tissue-specific Ca2+ damage signalling. In turn, this triggers a differential growth response allowing the unwounded root to avoid the site of a potential threat. Our results reveal a non-canonical rapid response mechanism for inter-plant communication based on ultrafast proton diffusion.

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Ducla, J., Di Fino, L., Mentzelopoulou, A., Talide, L., Besten, M., Bernacka-Wojcik, I., Arbring Sjöström, T., Zahid, N., Jämtgard, S., Stavrinidou, E., Niittylä, T., Sprakel, J., Marhavy, P.. 2024-10-04. H+ drives ultra-fast root-to-root responses to wounding. https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.10.04.616436

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