REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES AFFECT CYTOSOLIC CALCIUM DYNAMICS TO ORCHESTRATE SALT RESPONSE IN RICE (ORYZA SATIVA, L.)

The presence of a central Ca2+-ROS hub responsible for signal sorting between stimulus perception and specific response in plant cells is an intriguing hypothesis. Ca2+ signaling is known to be specific, exhibiting different signatures in response to different stimuli, but the specificity of ROS signaling has not yet been demonstrated. In rice, we recently reported different salt-induced cytosolic ROS signatures in different genetic backgrounds (i.e., salt-tolerant and sensitive plants). In this work we demonstrate that the Ca2+ transients induced by salt are also different in the two rice varieties. Furthermore, we report data showing that Ca2+ dynamics are influenced by ROS in the roots of salt-sensitive rice varieties, whereas this is not the case in salt-tolerant plants. Finally, we show data demonstrating the possibility of modulating the dynamics of salt-induced Ca2+ transients in the sensitive variety, thus inducing a partial tolerance to stress. Funded by PRID-seed2018 to EF