Fluorescence recovery after photobleaching reveals high cycling dynamics of plasma membrane aquaporins in Arabidopsis roots under salt stress

The constitutive cycling of plant plasma membrane (PM) proteins is an essential component of their function and regulation under resting or stress conditions. Transgenic Arabidopsis plants that express GFP fusions with AtPIP1;2 and AtPIP2;1, two prototypic PM aquaporins, were used to develop a fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) approach. This technique was used to discriminate between PM and endosomal pools of the aquaporin constructs, and to estimate their cycling between intracellular compartments and the cell surface. The membrane trafficking inhibitors tyrphostin A23, naphthalene-1-acetic acid and brefeldin A blocked the latter process. By contrast, a salt treatment (100 mm NaCl for 30 min) markedly enhanced the cycling of the aquaporin constructs and modified their pharmacological inhibition profile. Two distinct models for PM aquaporin cycling in resting or salt-stressed root cells are discussed.