AUTHOR=Pavlovič Andrej , Jakšová Jana , Kučerová Zuzana , Špundová Martina , Rác Marek , Roudnický Pavel , Mithöfer Axel 

TITLE=Diethyl ether anesthesia induces transient cytosolic [Ca2+] increase, heat shock proteins, and heat stress tolerance of photosystem II in Arabidopsis

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Plant Science

VOLUME=Volume 13 - 2022

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2022.995001

DOI=10.3389/fpls.2022.995001

ISSN=1664-462X

ABSTRACT=General volatile anaesthetic diethyl ether blocks sensation and responsive behaviour not only in animals but also in plants. Here, using a combination of RNA-seq and proteomic LC-MS/MS analyses we investigated the effect of anaesthetic diethyl ether on gene expression and downstream consequences in plant Arabidopsis thaliana. Differential expression analyses revealed reprogramming of gene expression under anaesthesia: 6168 genes were upregulated, 6310 genes were downregulated, while 9914 genes were not affected in comparison to control plants. On the protein level, out of 5150 proteins identified, 393 were significantly upregulated, and 227 were significantly downregulated. Among the highest significantly downregulated processes in etherized plants were chlorophyll/tetrapyrrole biosynthesis and photosynthesis. However, measurements of chlorophyll a fluorescence did not show inhibition of electron transport through photosystem II. The most significantly upregulated process was the response to heat stress (mainly heat shock proteins, HSPs). Using transgenic A. thaliana expressing APOAEQUORIN, we showed transient increase of cytoplasmic calcium level [Ca2+]cyt in response to diethyl ether application. In addition, cell membrane permeability for ions also increased under anaesthesia. The plants pre-treated with diethyl ether, and thus with induced HSPs, had increased tolerance of photosystem II to subsequent heat stress through the process known as cross-tolerance or priming. All these data indicate that diethyl ether anaesthesia may partially mimic heat stress in plants through the effect on membrane fluidization.