Protein phosphorylation is involved in the water stress-induced ABA accumulation in the roots ofMalus hupehensis Rehd

Water stress-induced ABA accumulation plays a key role in the root to shoot communication and/or the cell to cell signaling under the soil stresses. The signaling of the water stress itself that leads to the accumulation, however, is less known. In this study, we subjected the roots ofMalus hupehensis seedlings to water stress treatment and investigated the ABA accumulation in relation to protein phosphorylation. Our results showed that ABA accumulation could be substantially triggered in 40 min and reached 4 folds in 100 min after treatment with 30% PEG 6000 (polyethylene glycol). The water stress treatment also led to a substantial enhancement of total kinase activity, assessed with histone-III as substrate, in 15 min and a maximum enhancement in 30 min before it declined to initial level. The Ca²⁺-dependent kinase activity showed a similar, if not more sensitive, trend. When the roots were fed with labeled³²P-ATP, water stress enhanced the labeling of proteins, which showed a maximum labeling at 40 min. Two inhibitors of protein kinases, Quercetin and H7, effectively diminished or completely blocked the ABA accumulation under the stress treatment. It is therefore suggest that protein phosphorylation is involved in the signaling of the water stress-induced ABA accumulation.