A viral infection reshapes Arabidopsis water management via root hydraulics, 1 aquaporin downregulation and osmotic adjustment
The effect of plant viruses on root water relations and on how roots and shoots coordinate under infection remains poorly understood. Using a hydroponic Arabidopsis thaliana–Turnip mosaic virus (TuMV) pathosystem, we integrated biometric, anatomical, hydraulic, and gas-exchange measurements to disse...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Artículo |
| Language: | Inglés |
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BioRxiv
2026
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/25036 https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.15.694488v1 https://doi.org/10.64898/2025.12.15.694488 |
| _version_ | 1855425456750198784 |
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| author | Manacorda, Carlos Augusto Cáceres, Pablo D. Sutka, Moira Amodeo, Gabriela Asurmendi, Sebastian Baroli, Irene |
| author_browse | Amodeo, Gabriela Asurmendi, Sebastian Baroli, Irene Cáceres, Pablo D. Manacorda, Carlos Augusto Sutka, Moira |
| author_facet | Manacorda, Carlos Augusto Cáceres, Pablo D. Sutka, Moira Amodeo, Gabriela Asurmendi, Sebastian Baroli, Irene |
| author_sort | Manacorda, Carlos Augusto |
| collection | INTA Digital |
| description | The effect of plant viruses on root water relations and on how roots and shoots coordinate under infection remains poorly understood. Using a hydroponic Arabidopsis thaliana–Turnip mosaic virus (TuMV) pathosystem, we integrated biometric, anatomical, hydraulic, and gas-exchange measurements to dissect how viral infection reshapes root–shoot water relations. TuMV impaired root development, as reflected by an early plateau of primary root elongation. At the functional level, infected plants exhibited a decrease in root hydraulic conductance per unit root mass, concomitant with transcriptional downregulation of root aquaporin genes. Despite this, the relative contribution of aquaporin-mediated water transport, assessed via sodium azide inhibition, remained unchanged, indicating that the virus downregulates total hydraulic capacity without altering the apoplastic–symplastic partitioning of water flow. Gas-exchange analysis revealed a virus-induced decoupling between stomatal conductance and net CO₂ assimilation, resulting in a non-adaptive increase in intrinsic water-use efficiency. This loss of photosynthetic plasticity, combined with shoot-localized osmotic adjustment (more negative leaf osmotic potential and higher relative water content), points to a constrained, suboptimal physiological state. Multivariate analysis confirmed that variation in physiological traits largely drives phenotypic divergence between treatments. Together, these coordinated alterations, reduced root hydraulics, rigid gas-exchange relationships and passive hydraulic matching to a stunted shoot, depict plants locked into a low-performance equilibrium, poorly equipped to compete for water and carbon. This work reveals a systemic hydraulic–photosynthetic reconfiguration that could account for compromises in plant resilience and resource competitiveness.
Highlight TuMV infection induces a coordinated whole-plant hydraulic reconfiguration characterized by premature growth arrest, reduced root hydraulic conductance, and decoupling of stomatal conductance from photosynthesis, resulting in a constrained physiological state. |
| format | Artículo |
| id | INTA25036 |
| institution | Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA -Argentina) |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| publishDateRange | 2026 |
| publishDateSort | 2026 |
| publisher | BioRxiv |
| publisherStr | BioRxiv |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | INTA250362026-01-23T13:50:07Z A viral infection reshapes Arabidopsis water management via root hydraulics, 1 aquaporin downregulation and osmotic adjustment Manacorda, Carlos Augusto Cáceres, Pablo D. Sutka, Moira Amodeo, Gabriela Asurmendi, Sebastian Baroli, Irene Arabidopsis thaliana Conductancia Hidráulica de Raíces Transpiración Virus de las Plantas Root Hydraulic conductivity Transpiration Plant Viruses Aquaporin Turnip Mosaic Virus Acuaporina Virus del Mosaico del Nabo The effect of plant viruses on root water relations and on how roots and shoots coordinate under infection remains poorly understood. Using a hydroponic Arabidopsis thaliana–Turnip mosaic virus (TuMV) pathosystem, we integrated biometric, anatomical, hydraulic, and gas-exchange measurements to dissect how viral infection reshapes root–shoot water relations. TuMV impaired root development, as reflected by an early plateau of primary root elongation. At the functional level, infected plants exhibited a decrease in root hydraulic conductance per unit root mass, concomitant with transcriptional downregulation of root aquaporin genes. Despite this, the relative contribution of aquaporin-mediated water transport, assessed via sodium azide inhibition, remained unchanged, indicating that the virus downregulates total hydraulic capacity without altering the apoplastic–symplastic partitioning of water flow. Gas-exchange analysis revealed a virus-induced decoupling between stomatal conductance and net CO₂ assimilation, resulting in a non-adaptive increase in intrinsic water-use efficiency. This loss of photosynthetic plasticity, combined with shoot-localized osmotic adjustment (more negative leaf osmotic potential and higher relative water content), points to a constrained, suboptimal physiological state. Multivariate analysis confirmed that variation in physiological traits largely drives phenotypic divergence between treatments. Together, these coordinated alterations, reduced root hydraulics, rigid gas-exchange relationships and passive hydraulic matching to a stunted shoot, depict plants locked into a low-performance equilibrium, poorly equipped to compete for water and carbon. This work reveals a systemic hydraulic–photosynthetic reconfiguration that could account for compromises in plant resilience and resource competitiveness. Highlight TuMV infection induces a coordinated whole-plant hydraulic reconfiguration characterized by premature growth arrest, reduced root hydraulic conductance, and decoupling of stomatal conductance from photosynthesis, resulting in a constrained physiological state. Instituto de Biotecnología Fil: Manacorda, Carlos Augusto. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Agrobiotecnología y Biología Molecular; Argentina Fil: Manacorda, Carlos Augusto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET); Argentina Fil: Cáceres, Pablo D. Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA). Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Biodiversidad, Biología Experimental y Aplicada. Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental; Argentina Fil: Cáceres, Pablo D. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET); Argentina Fil: Sutka, Moira. Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA). Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Biodiversidad, Biología Experimental y Aplicada. Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental; Argentina Fil: Sutka, Moira. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET); Argentina Fil: Amodeo, Gabriela. Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA). Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Biodiversidad, Biología Experimental y Aplicada. Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental; Argentina Fil: Amodeo, Gabriela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET); Argentina Fil: Asurmendi, Sebastian. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Agrobiotecnología y Biología Molecular; Argentina Fil: Asurmendi, Sebastian. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET); Argentina Fil: Baroli, Irene. Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA). Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Biodiversidad, Biología Experimental y Aplicada. Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental; Argentina Fil: Baroli, Irene. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET); Argentina 2026-01-23T13:35:47Z 2026-01-23T13:35:47Z 2025-12 info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersion http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/25036 https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.15.694488v1 https://doi.org/10.64898/2025.12.15.694488 eng info:eu-repograntAgreement/INTA/2023-PD-L03-I084, Estreses bióticos y abióticos en plantas. Estudios fisiológicos y patológicos para el diseño de estrategias de mejoramiento y manejo info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/ Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) application/pdf BioRxiv BioRxiv : the preprint server for biology (December 16, 2025) |
| spellingShingle | Arabidopsis thaliana Conductancia Hidráulica de Raíces Transpiración Virus de las Plantas Root Hydraulic conductivity Transpiration Plant Viruses Aquaporin Turnip Mosaic Virus Acuaporina Virus del Mosaico del Nabo Manacorda, Carlos Augusto Cáceres, Pablo D. Sutka, Moira Amodeo, Gabriela Asurmendi, Sebastian Baroli, Irene A viral infection reshapes Arabidopsis water management via root hydraulics, 1 aquaporin downregulation and osmotic adjustment |
| title | A viral infection reshapes Arabidopsis water management via root hydraulics, 1 aquaporin downregulation and osmotic adjustment |
| title_full | A viral infection reshapes Arabidopsis water management via root hydraulics, 1 aquaporin downregulation and osmotic adjustment |
| title_fullStr | A viral infection reshapes Arabidopsis water management via root hydraulics, 1 aquaporin downregulation and osmotic adjustment |
| title_full_unstemmed | A viral infection reshapes Arabidopsis water management via root hydraulics, 1 aquaporin downregulation and osmotic adjustment |
| title_short | A viral infection reshapes Arabidopsis water management via root hydraulics, 1 aquaporin downregulation and osmotic adjustment |
| title_sort | viral infection reshapes arabidopsis water management via root hydraulics 1 aquaporin downregulation and osmotic adjustment |
| topic | Arabidopsis thaliana Conductancia Hidráulica de Raíces Transpiración Virus de las Plantas Root Hydraulic conductivity Transpiration Plant Viruses Aquaporin Turnip Mosaic Virus Acuaporina Virus del Mosaico del Nabo |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/25036 https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.15.694488v1 https://doi.org/10.64898/2025.12.15.694488 |
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