Cellular responses of developing Fucus serratus embryos exposed to elevated concentrations of Cu2+.

Nielsen, Hanne Dalsgaard; Brown, Murray T; Brownlee, Colin

Abstract

Elevated concentrations of Cu2+ can have inhibitory effects on early development in plants and algae by targeting specific cellular processes. In the present study the effects of elevated Cu2+ on developmental processes in embryos of the brown algae Fucus serratus (Phaeophyceae) were investigated. Elevated Cu2+ was shown to inhibit fixation of the zygotic polar axis but not its formation. Actin localization was unaffected by elevated Cu2+ but polarized secretion, which occurs downstream, was inhibited. Significant differences in tolerance to Cu2+ were observed for polarization and rhizoid elongation of embryos derived from adults from Cu2+-contaminated and uncontaminated locations. Moderate Cu2+ exposure inhibited the generation of cytosolic Ca2+ signals in response to hypo-osmotic shocks. In contrast, cytosolic Ca2+ was elevated by treatments with high [Cu2+] and this coincided with production of reactive oxygen species. The results indicate that direct effects on signalling processes involved in polarization and growth may in part explain complex, concentration-dependent effects of Cu2+ on early development.

Citation

Nielsen, H. D., Brown, M. T., & Brownlee, C. (2003). Cellular responses of developing Fucus serratus embryos exposed to elevated concentrations of Cu2+. Plant, Cell and Environment, 26(10), 1737-1747. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-3040.2003.01091.x

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: Oct 1, 2003
• Deposit Date: Jul 18, 2008
• Print ISSN: 0140-7791
• Electronic ISSN: 1365-3040
• Publisher: Wiley
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 26
• Issue: 10
• Pages: 1737-1747
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-3040.2003.01091.x
• Keywords: Fucus; Developmental inhibition; Cell polarity; Copper; Signalling; Stress response; Toxicity mechanism; Zygote
• Public URL: http://researchrepository.napier.ac.uk/id/eprint/1738
• Publisher URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-3040.2003.01091.x