Amino acid application inhibits root-to-shoot cadmium translocation in Chinese cabbage by modulating pectin methyl-esterification.

ABSTRACT

The exogenous application of amino acids (AAs) generally alleviates cadmium (Cd) toxicity in plants by altering their subcellular distribution. However, the physiological mechanisms underlying AA-mediated cell wall (CW) sequestration of Cd in Chinese cabbage remain unclear. Using two genotypes of Chinses cabbage, Jingcui 60 (Cd-tolerant) and 16-7 (Cd-sensitive), we characterized the root structure, subcellular distribution of Cd, CW component, and related gene expression under the Cd stress. Cysteine (Cys) supplementation led to a reduction in the Cd concentration in the shoots of Jingcui 60 and 16-7 by 65.09 % and 64.03 %, respectively. Addition of Cys alleviated leaf chlorosis in both cultivars by increasing Cd chelation in the root CW and reducing its distribution in the cytoplasm and organelles. We further demonstrated that Cys supplementation mediated the downregulation of PMEI1 expression and improving the activity of pectin methyl-esterase (PME) by 17.98 % and 25.52 % in both cultivars, respectively, compared to the Cd treatment, resulting in an approximate 12.00 %-14.70 % increase in Cd retention in pectin. In contrast, threonine (Thr) application did not significantly alter Cd distribution in the shoots of either cultivar. Taken together, our results suggest that Cys application reduces Cd root-to-shoot translocation by increasing Cd sequestration in the root CW through the downregulation of pectin methyl-esterification.