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Cluster Update
PIANO Project Makes Two Major Advances on the Role of Nitric Oxide in Plants

http://www.bulletins-electroniques.com/actualites/63937.htm

In June, PIANO project participants will be meeting to define a new exploratory path, which might lead them to submit a new project to ANR (French National Research Agency) and obtain funding. The PIANO project - accredited by the VITAGORA cluster and funded by ANR - will be over at the end of this year. "Our goal is to apprehend and understand the molecular mechanisms through which plant-produced nitric oxide guides the cell towards an appropriate response," recapped Professor David Wendehenne who coordinates the project and also heads the Cellular and Molecular Signaling in Defense Reactions team at the joint Plant-Microbe-Environment research unit (INRA, CNRS, University of Burgundy). Current results are more than satisfying and have been published in several articles in international journals.

"First, we were able to highlight a rather unexpected role of nitric oxide," the Dijon based researcher explained. Nitric oxide is involved in iron retention during interactions with microorganisms. For instance, when they cause an infection, a competition for the iron in the plant ensues. "Nitric oxide deploys a special process that will help the plant preserve iron," he exclaimed as the researcher and his colleagues did not except to make this observation at all.

Later, the researchers were able to identify the genes directly regulated by nitric monoxide in this situation, including one gene that was of particular interest to them because when there is an iron deficiency, nitric oxide positively regulates the gene that codes for a protein that transports iron in the plant. "In response to abiotic stress triggered by an iron deficiency in the plant, nitric oxide will play a regulating role of the said gene, thus enabling the plant to redistribute its iron."

The researchers then formulated the hypothesis that when a microorganism causes an infection in a plant, iron may be redistributed to the areas that are not accessible to the microorganism, thus the plant is better protected. To verify the hypothesis, they 'switched off' the expression of the gene. As a result, the plant was more sensitive to a certain pathogenic organism. Their findings will be published in an article in the upcoming months.

Another major advance under the PIANO project has been the identification of proteins directly regulated by nitric oxide. In mammals, the mechanism is known and some one hundred nitric oxide regulated proteins have already been identified. "This provided a better understanding of the role of NO and cleared the way for discovering new nitric oxide functions," pointed out David Wendehenne before adding, "The most thrilling thing in the identification of the proteins in plants is that they are not only associated with the primary metabolism of plants but also with the regulation of protein folding in space." Consequently, the research developed under PIANO seems to have uncovered a new function of nitric oxide in plants, explaining why the researchers want to submit a new project to ANR. To be continued...

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Unité Mixte de Recherche "Plante-Microbe-Environnement" (INRA/CNRS/Université de Bourgogne) - Joint Plant-Microbe-Environment Research Unit - David Wendehenne - email: wendehen@dijon-inra.fr

Code brève
ADIT : 63937

ADIT - Jean-François Desessard - email: jfd@adit.fr

eTech France numéro 243 (5/07/2010) - ADIT / ADIT - http://www.bulletins-electroniques.com/actualites/63937.htm