Characterization of potential ABA receptors in Vitis vinifera

Molecular control mechanisms for abiotic stress tolerance are based on the activation and regulation of specific stress-related genes. The phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA) is a key endogenous messenger in a plant’s response to such stresses. A novel ABA binding mechanism which plays a key role in plant cell signaling cascades has recently been uncovered. In the absence of ABA, a type 2C protein phosphatase (PP2C) interacts and inhibits the kinase SnRK2. Binding of ABA to the PYR/PYLs receptors enables interaction between the ABA receptor and the PP2C protein, and abrogates the SnRK2 inactivation. The active SnRK2 is then free to activate the ABA-responsive element Binding Factors which target ABA-dependent gene expression. We used the grape as a model to study the ABA perception mechanism in fruit trees. The grape ABA signaling cascade consists of at least seven ABA receptors and six PP2Cs. We used a yeast two-hybrid system to examine physical interaction in vitro between the grape ABA receptors and their interacting partners, and found that twenty-two receptor-PP2C interactions can occur. Moreover, quantifying these affinities by the use of the LacZ reporter enables us to show that VvPP2C4 and VvPP2C9 are the major binding partners of the ABA receptor. We also tested in vivo the root and leaf gene expression of the various ABA receptors and PP2Cs in the presence of exogenic ABA and under different abiotic stresses such as high salt concentration, cold and drought, and found that many of these genes are regulated by such abiotic environmental factors. Our results indicate organ specificity in the ABA receptor genes and stress specificity in the VvPP2Cs. We suggest that VvPP2C4 is the major PP2C involved in ABA perception in leaves and roots, and VvRCAR6 and VvRCAR5 respectively, are the major receptors involved in ABA perception in these organs. Identification, characterization and manipulation of the central players in the ABA signaling cascades in fruit trees is likely to prove essential for improving their performance in the future.