The seeds from many plants, such as legumes or crucifers, accumulate large amounts of proteins in vacuoles. These reserves are essential for seedlings to germinate and start a new life cycle. Furthermore, they constitute a fundamental source of amino acids for human and animal nutrition. In addition to this role in protein storage, plant vacuoles participate in other essential processes such as cell elongation, recycling, defense against pathogens and pests, or sequestration and detoxification of compounds. To gain insight into the biogenesis and function of vacuoles, it is necessary to understand how their components are transported. However, many of the mechanisms involved in transport to vacuoles in plants are still unknown, and in particular, the role of the cytoskeleton in this process.
In this new report, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), Enrique Rojo´s group at the CNB-CSIC reports on the identification of new 17 vacuolar trafficking mutants that define 13 cellular factors required for vacuolar trafficking in Arabidopsis thaliana. Among the findings, Dr. Rojo highlights "the discovery of an unknown compartment of the plant vacuolar trafficking pathway that points to the participation of microtubules and kinesins in this transport". The identification of these factors provides new tools to modify the characteristics and functionalities of vacuoles, with the aim to improve plant growth and adaptation to the environment.
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MTV proteins unveil ER- and microtubule-associated compartments in the plant vacuolar trafficking pathway. Delgadillo MO, Ruano G, Zouhar J, Sauer M, Shen J, Lazarova A, Sanmartín M, Lai LTF, Deng C, Wang P, Hussey PJ, Sánchez-Serrano JJ, Jiang L, Rojo E.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2020 Apr 22. pii: 201919820. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1919820117