CDPK-mediated signalling pathways: specificity and cross-talk

Abstract

Plants are constantly exposed to environmental changes and have to integrate a variety of biotic and abiotic stress stimuli. Calcium‐dependent protein kinases (CDPKs) are implicated as important sensors of Ca²⁺ flux in plants in response to these stresses. CDPKs are encoded by multigene families, and expression levels of these genes are spatially and temporally controlled throughout development. In addition, a subset of CDPK genes responds to external stimuli. Biochemical evidence supports the idea that CDPKs are involved in signal transduction during stress conditions. Furthermore, loss‐of‐function and gain‐of‐function studies revealed that signalling pathways leading to cold, salt, drought or pathogen resistance are mediated by specific CDPK isoforms