Photosynthesis, heme biosynthesis, and Fe-S cluster assembly all take place in the chloroplast, and all require iron. Reduction of iron via a membrane-bound Fe(III) chelate reductase is required before iron transport across membranes in a variety of systems, but to date there has been no definitive genetic proof that chloroplasts have such a reduction system. Here we report that one of the eight members of the Arabidopsis ferric reductase oxidase (FRO) family, FRO7, localizes to the chloroplast. Chloroplasts prepared from fro7 loss-of-function mutants have 75% less Fe(III) chelate reductase activity and contain 33% less iron per microgram of chlorophyll than wild-type chloroplasts. This decreased iron content is presumably responsible for the observed defects in photosynthetic electron transport. When germinated in alkaline soil, fro7 seedlings show severe chlorosis and die without setting seed unless watered with high levels of soluble iron. Overall, our results provide molecular evidence that FRO7 plays a role in chloroplast iron acquisition and is required for efficient photosynthesis in young seedlings and for survival under iron-limiting conditions. metal homostasis ͉ FRO ͉ Arabidopsis ͉ alkaline soil ͉ photosynthesis

Exposure of the hyperaccumulator Alyssum lesbiacum to nickel (Ni) is known to result in a dose-dependent increase in xylem sap concentrations of Ni and the chelator free histidine (His). Addition of equimolar concentrations of exogenousl-His to an Ni-amended hydroponic rooting medium enhances Ni flux into the xylem in the nonaccumulator Alyssum montanum, and, as reported here, in Brassica juncea L. cv Vitasso. In B. juncea, reducing the entry of l-His into the root by supplying d-His instead of l-His, or l-His in the presence of a 10-fold excess of l-alanine, did not affect root Ni uptake, but reduced Ni release into the xylem. Compared with B. juncea, root His concentrations were constitutively about 4.4-fold higher in A. lesbiacum, and did not increase within 9 h of exposure to Ni. Cycloheximide did not affect root His or Ni concentrations, but strongly decreased the release of His and Ni from the root into the xylem of A. lesbiacum, whereas xylem sap concentrations of Ca and Mg remained unaffected. Near-quantitative chelation of Ni with nitrilotriacetate in the rooting medium did not enhance Ni flux into the xylem of A. lesbiacum and B. juncea, suggesting the absence of a significant apoplastic pathway for Ni entry into the xylem. The data suggest that in B. juncea roots, Ni2+uptake is independent of simultaneous uptake of His. In both species, enhanced release of Ni into the xylem is associated with concurrent release of His from an increased root free His pool.

Iron is an essential micronutrient but is toxic if accumulated at high levels. Thus, iron uptake and distribution in plants are controlled by precise regulatory mechanisms. IRON-REGULATED TRANSPORTER1 (IRT1) is the major high affinity iron transporter responsible for iron uptake from the soil in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). Previously, we showed that IRT1 is subject to posttranscriptional regulation; when expressed from the constitutive cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter, IRT1 protein accumulates only in iron-deficient roots. IRT1 contains an intracellular loop that may be critical for posttranslational regulation by metals. Of particular interest are a histidine (His) motif (HGHGHGH) that might bind metals and two lysine residues that could serve as attachment sites for ubiquitin. We constructed a set of mutant IRT1 alleles: IRT1H154Q, IRT1H156Q, IRT1H158Q, IRT1H160Q, IRT14HQ (quadruple His mutant), IRT1K146R, IRT1K171R, and a double mutant (IRT1K146R,K171R). Mutation of the His or lysine residues did not eliminate the ability of IRT1 to transport iron or zinc. Expression of each of the IRT1 variants and an IRT1intact construct in plants from the 35S promoter revealed that either K146 or K171 is required for iron-induced protein turnover, and 35S-IRT1K146R,K171R plants contain higher levels of iron as compared to 35S-IRT1 and wild type. Furthermore, accumulation of metals in 35S-IRT1K146R,K171R plants was not associated with an increase in ferric chelate reductase activity; this result indicates that, at least under conditions when iron is abundant, reduction of ferric iron may not be the rate-limiting step in iron uptake by strategy I plants such as Arabidopsis.

A tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. cv. Pera) callus culture tolerant to NaCl was obtained by successive subcultures of NaCl-sensitive calli in medium supplemented with 50 mM NaCl. NaCl-tolerant calli grew better than NaCl-sensitive calli in media supplemented with 50 and 100 mM NaCl. Analysis of callus ion content showed a strong increase in Na+ and Cl- both in NaCl-tolerant and -sensitive calli grown in media containing NaCl for one subculture. Cells from NaCl-tolerant calli showed a higher H+ extrusion activity than those from NaCl-sensitive calli grown for one subculture in the presence of NaCl. The inhibition of H+ extrusion by NaCl-sensitive cells was correlated with an inhibition of microsomal vanadate-sensitive H+-ATPase (EC 3.6.1.35) and ATP-dependent H+ transport, while the stimulation of H+ extrusion by cells tolerant to 50 mM NaCl was correlated with an increase in plasma membrane ATP-dependent H+ transport. The increase of ATP-dependent H+ extrusion in plasma membranes isolated from 50 mM NaCl-tolerant calli was not a result of stimulation of a vanadate-sensitive ATP hydrolytic activity or an increase in passive permeability to H+. Relative to NaCl-sensitive calli, plasma membrane H+-ATPase from calli tolerant to 50 mM NaCl showed a lower Km for Mg2+-ATP. Our results indicate that tolerance of tomato calli to 50 mM NaCl increases the affinity of plasma membrane H+-ATPase for the substrate ATP and stimulates the H+-pumping activity of this enzyme without modifying its phosphohydrolytic activity.