National Agri-Food Biotechnology Institute (NABI), Mohali, Punjab, India.
National Agri-Food Biotechnology Institute (NABI), Mohali, Punjab, India; Department of Biotechnology, Punjab University, Chandigarh, India.
J Hazard Mater. 2021 Apr 15;408:124910. doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2020.124910. Epub 2020 Dec 20.
Uptake of hazardous metal(loid)s adversely affects plants and imposes a threat to the entire food chain. Here, the role of aquaporins (AQPs) providing tolerance against hazardous metal(loid)s in plants is discussed to provide a perspective on the present understanding, knowledge gaps, and opportunities. Plants adopt complex molecular and physiological mechanisms for better tolerance, adaptability, and survival under metal(loid)s stress. Water conservation in plants is one such primary strategies regulated by AQPs, a family of channel-forming proteins facilitating the transport of water and many other solutes. The strategy is more evident with reports suggesting differential expression of AQPs adopted by plants to cope with the heavy metal stress. In this regard, numerous studies showing enhanced tolerance against hazardous elements in plants due to AQPs activity are discussed. Consequently, present understanding of various aspects of AQPs, such as tertiary-structure, transport activity, solute-specificity, differential expression, gating mechanism, and subcellular localization, are reviewed. Similarly, various tools and techniques are discussed in detail aiming at efficient utilization of resources and knowledge to combat metal(loid)s stress. The scope of AQP transgenesis focusing on heavy metal stresses is also highlighted. The information provided here will be helpful to design efficient strategies for the development of metal(loid)s stress-tolerant crops.
有害金属（类）的摄取会对植物造成不良影响，并对整个食物链构成威胁。本文讨论了水通道蛋白（AQP）在植物中对有害金属（类）的耐受性的作用，以期了解目前的认识、知识空白和机会。植物为了更好地耐受、适应和在金属（类）胁迫下生存，采用了复杂的分子和生理机制。水在植物中的保存是由 AQP 调节的主要策略之一，AQP 是一类形成通道的蛋白质，可促进水和许多其他溶质的运输。这一策略在报告中更为明显，报告表明植物采用了不同的 AQP 表达来应对重金属胁迫。在这方面，讨论了许多研究表明由于 AQP 活性，植物对有害元素的耐受性增强。因此，本文综述了 AQP 的各个方面，如三级结构、运输活性、溶质特异性、差异表达、门控机制和亚细胞定位。同样，详细讨论了各种工具和技术，旨在有效利用资源和知识来应对金属（类）胁迫。重点介绍了 AQP 转基因在重金属胁迫方面的应用。本文提供的信息将有助于设计有效的策略来开发耐受金属（类）胁迫的作物。
