Hydrogen sulfide effects on stomatal apertures

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) has recently been reported to be a signaling molecule in plants. It has been well established that is has such roles in animals and it has been suggested that it is included into the group of gasotransmitters. We have recently shown that hydrogen sulfide causes stomatal opening in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. H2S can be supplied to the plant tissues from donors such as sodium hydrosulfide (NaSH) or more recently from slow release H2S donor molecules such as GYY4137. Both give similar effects, that is, they cause stomatal opening. Furthermore both H2S donors reduced the accumulation of nitric oxide (NO) induced by abscisic acid (ABA) treatment of leaf tissues. Here similar work has been repeated in a crop plant, Capsicum anuum, and similar data has been obtained, suggesting that such effects of hydrogen sulfide on plants is not confined to model species.