Plant High-Affinity Potassium (HKT) Transporters involved in salinity tolerance: structural insights to probe differences in ion selectivity.

ABSTRACT: High-affinity Potassium Transporters (HKTs) belong to an important class of integral membrane proteins (IMPs) that facilitate cation transport across the plasma membranes of plant cells. Some members of the HKT protein family have been shown to be critical for salinity tolerance in commercially important crop species, particularly in grains, through exclusion of Na+ ions from sensitive shoot tissues in plants. However, given the number of different HKT proteins expressed in plants, it is likely that different members of this protein family perform in a range of functions. Plant breeders and biotechnologists have attempted to manipulate HKT gene expression through genetic engineering and more conventional plant breeding methods to improve the salinity tolerance of commercially important cro

SUBMITTER: Waters S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3645709 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature