Revisiting plant electric signaling: Challenging an old phenomenon with novel discoveries

Curr Opin Plant Biol. 2024 Mar 28;79:102528. doi: 10.1016/j.pbi.2024.102528. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTHigher plants efficiently orchestrate rapid systemic responses to diverse environmental stimuli through electric signaling. This review explores the mechanisms underlying two main types of electric signals in plants, action potentials (APs) and slow wave potentials (SWPs), and how new discoveries challenge conventional neurophysiological paradigms traditionally forming their theoretical foundations. Animal APs are biophysically well-defined, whereas plant APs are often classified based on their shape, lacking thorough characterization. SWPs are depolarizing electric signals deviating from this shape, leading to an oversimplified classification of plant electric signals. Indeed, investigating the generation and propagation of plant APs and SWPs showcases a complex interplay of mechanisms that sustain self-propagating signals and internally propagating stimuli, resulting in membrane depolarization, cytosolic calcium increase, and alterations in reactive oxygen species and pH. A holistic understanding of plant electric signaling will rely on unraveling the network of ion-conducting proteins, signaling molecules, and mechanisms for signal generation and propagation.PMID:38552341 | DOI:10.1016/j.pbi.2024.102528
Source: Current Opinion in Plant Biology - Category: Biology Authors: Source Type: research