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Review
. 2018 Feb 27;19(3):665.
doi: 10.3390/ijms19030665.

Calcium Signalling in Plant Biotic Interactions

Didier Aldon  1 , Malick Mbengue  2 , Christian Mazars  3 , Jean-Philippe Galaud  4
Affiliations
Review

Calcium Signalling in Plant Biotic Interactions

Didier Aldon et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

Calcium (Ca2+) is a universal second messenger involved in various cellular processes, leading to plant development and to biotic and abiotic stress responses. Intracellular variation in free Ca2+ concentration is among the earliest events following the plant perception of environmental change. These Ca2+ variations differ in their spatio-temporal properties according to the nature, strength and duration of the stimulus. However, their conversion into biological responses requires Ca2+ sensors for decoding and relaying. The occurrence in plants of calmodulin (CaM) but also of other sets of plant-specific Ca2+ sensors such as calmodulin-like proteins (CMLs), Ca2+-dependent protein kinases (CDPKs) and calcineurin B-like proteins (CBLs) indicate that plants possess specific tools and machineries to convert Ca2+ signals into appropriate responses. Here, we focus on recent progress made in monitoring the generation of Ca2+ signals at the whole plant or cell level and their long distance propagation during biotic interactions. The contribution of CaM/CMLs and CDPKs in plant immune responses mounted against bacteria, fungi, viruses and insects are also presented.

Keywords: CDPKs; CMLs; biotic stress responses; calcium; calcium signature; calmodulin; plant immunity; symbiosis.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Key steps in Ca2+ signaling pathways during plant biotic interactions. Plants are exposed to diverse microorganisms, pests or other aggressors leading to beneficial or detrimental interactions. Plant cells possess a large repertoire of sensors that allow to perceive, discriminate and transduce different signals during plant immunity (Pathogen-Associated Molecular Patterns (PAMPs) , effectors, toxins, Damage-Associated Molecular Patterns (DAMPs) or Herbivory-Associated Molecular Patterns (HAMPs)) or during the interaction with mutualistic organisms (Nod and Myc Factors). In response to different stimuli, the earliest steps rely on specific cytosolic Ca2+ rises termed calcium signatures occurring in the cytosol and in organelles, including nucleus (Section 2.1). These calcium signatures differ by their spatio-temporal properties and encode a first layer of specificity. A second layer of specificity, relies on the decoding of these calcium transients (Section 3). Ca2+ binds to a plethora of sensors such as calmodulin (CaM), CaM-like proteins (CML), calcium-dependent protein kinases (CDPK) that activate target proteins either by direct binding or through phosphorylation (P).
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