Polyamines: Α bioenergetic smart switch for plant protection and development

Eleni Navakoudis; Kiriakos Kotzabasis

doi:10.1016/j.jplph.2022.153618

Polyamines: Α bioenergetic smart switch for plant protection and development

J Plant Physiol. 2022 Mar:270:153618. doi: 10.1016/j.jplph.2022.153618. Epub 2022 Jan 13.

Authors

Eleni Navakoudis¹, Kiriakos Kotzabasis²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Biology, University of Crete, Voutes University Campus, 70013, Heraklion, Greece; Department of Chemical Engineering, Cyprus University of Technology, 3603, Limassol, Cyprus.
² Department of Biology, University of Crete, Voutes University Campus, 70013, Heraklion, Greece. Electronic address: kotzab@uoc.gr.

PMID: 35051689
DOI: 10.1016/j.jplph.2022.153618

Abstract

The present review highlights the bioenergetic role of polyamines in plant protection and development and proposes a universal model for describing polyamine-mediated stress responses. Any stress condition induces an excitation pressure on photosystem II by reforming the photosynthetic apparatus. To control this phenomenon, polyamines act directly on the molecular structure and function of the photosynthetic apparatus as well as on the components of the chemiosmotic proton-motive force (ΔpH/Δψ), thus regulating photochemical (qP) and non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) of energy. The review presents the mechanistic characteristics that underline the key role of polyamines in the structure, function, and bioenergetics of the photosynthetic apparatus upon light adaptation and/or under stress conditions. By following this mechanism, it is feasible to make stress-sensitive plants to be tolerant by simply altering their polyamine composition (especially the ratio of putrescine to spermine), either chemically or by light regulation.

Keywords: Abiotic stress; Photoadaptation; Photodevelopment; Photosynthesis; Polyamines; Stress tolerance.

Publication types

Review