Elicitor action via cell membrane of a cultured rice cell demonstrated by the single-cell transient assay.

In order to analyze intracellular signal transduction, we investigated the mechanism of chemical elicitor action by single-cell transient assay using green fluorescent protein (GFP) as a reporter gene. When the elicitor was applied from outside the cell into which the chitinase promoter and GFP reporter were introduced beforehand, fluorescence emission of GFP was observed. In contrast, when the elicitor was introduced in the cell to let the elicitor act from inside, no emission was observed. Addition of further elicitor from outside, however, did cause GFP emission. Therefore, it is clear that the elicitor does not act after entering the cell but that its signal is transduced into the cell via the cell membrane.