Microtubules (MTs) play an important role in the regulation of autophagy development in yeast and animal as well as in plant cells. MTs participate in maturation and traffic of autophagosomes through their dynamic state changes and post-translational modifications of tubulin, namely acetylation. We subjected Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings to metabolic-, salt-, osmotic stresses as well as irradiation of ultraviolet B and investigated the involvement of plant MTs in the development of stress-induced autophagy via tubulin acetylation. For this purpose Arabidopsis thaliana line expressing autophagy-related protein 8 h (atg8h)-GFP was generated to investigate autophagy, applying the level of free GFP as an indicator of autophagy development. Using autophagosome confocal imaging and Western blot analysis of Atg8 post-translational lipidation and synchronous GFP release it was shown that all examined stressful stimuli led to pronounced development of autophagy, particularly in different root tissues. Moreover, autophagy development was accompanied by α-tubulin acetylation under all stressful conditions. Presented data indicate the possible role of the post-translational acetylation of α-tubulin in the mediation of plant stress-induced autophagy.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.