Calcium control of the hydraulic resistance in cells of Chara corallina.

The hydraulic resistance (the reciprocal of the hydraulic conductivity Lp) Lp was measured in cells of Chara corallina by the method of transcellular osmosis. Treatment of cells with 100 mM KCl decreased Lp significantly. Subsequent treatment of the cells with 70 mM CaCl recovered the decreased Lp to the original value. To know whether K or Ca/Mg acts on the cell wall and/or the membrane, the hydraulic resistances of the cell wall (Lp) and that of the membrane (Lp) were determined in one and the same cell. For this, a pair of cells (twin cells) were made from an internodal cell, one used for measurement of Lp and the other used for the measurement of Lp. From Lp and Lp, Lp was calculated. Both Lp and Lp were decreased by K, while Lp was not affected by K. The same result was obtained with 5 mM EGTA. Lp was decreased more than it was by KCl but Lp remained constant after EGTA treatment. The recovery of the K-decreased Lp with Ca can be explained exclusively by the recovery of Lp with Ca. The Ca recovery of Lp was observed in the intact cell wall but not in the cell wall tube isolated from an internodal cell. The different response to Ca between the intact cell wall and the isolated cell wall was discussed in relation to the tension in the cell wall which may be an important factor for the ionic regulation of hydraulic conductivity.