Abscisic Acid Increases Hydrogen Peroxide in Multiple Subcellular Compartments to Drive Stomatal Closure
Stomatal closure regulates transpiration and gas exchange in response to environmental cues. Drought upregulates ABA signaling, which elevates levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS). However, the subcellular location and identity of these ROS has received limited study. We found that in guard cells, ABA increased fluorescence of the general redox sensor, dichlorofluorescein (DCF), in distinct subcellular locations including chloroplasts, cytosol, nuclei, and cytosolic puncta. These changes were lost in ABA-insensitive quintuple receptor mutant and accentuated in an ABA-hypersensitive mutant. ABA induced ROS accumulation in these subcellular compartments was lost in mutants with defects in genes encoding hydrogen peroxide synthesizing respiratory burst oxidase homolog (RBOH) enzymes and guard cells treated with the RBOH inhibitor VAS2870, while exogenous hydrogen peroxide treatment is sufficient to close guard cells. The hydrogen peroxide-selective probe, peroxy orange1, also showed ABA-dependent increases in chloroplasts and cytosolic puncta. Using the more sensitive genetically-encoded hydrogen peroxide reporter roGFP-Orp1, we also detected significant hydrogen peroxide increases in the cytosol and nucleus. These cytosolic puncta accumulate ROS after ABA treatment show colocalization with Mitotracker and with a mitochondrial targeted mt-roGFP2-Orp1, which also revealed ABA-increased ROS in mitochondria. These results indicate that elevated hydrogen peroxide after ABA treatment in these subcellular compartments is necessary and sufficient to drive stomatal closure.