The Arabidopsis major intrinsic protein NIP5;1 is essential for efficient boron uptake and plant development under boron limitation

Boron (B) is essential in plants but often present at low concentrations in the environment. To investigate how plants survive under conditions of B limitation, we conducted a transcriptome analysis and identified NIP5;1, a member of the major intrinsic protein family, as a gene upregulated in B-deficient roots of Arabidopsis thaliana. Promoter-beta-glucuronidase fusions indicated that NIP5;1 is strongly upregulated in the root elongation zone and the root hair zone under B limitation, and green fluorescent protein-tagged NIP5;1 proteins localized to the plasma membrane. Expression in Xenopus laevis oocytes demonstrated that NIP5;1 facilitated the transport of boric acid in addition to water. Importantly, two T-DNA insertion lines of NIP5;1 displayed lower boric acid uptake into roots, lower biomass production, and increased sensitivity of root and shoot development to B deficiency. These results identify NIP5;1 as a major plasma membrane boric acid channel crucial for the B uptake required for plant growth and development under B limitation.