Coordinated Localization and Antagonistic Function of NtPLC3 and PI4P 5-Kinases in the Subapical Plasma Membrane of Tobacco Pollen Tubes

Polar tip growth of pollen tubes is regulated by the membrane phospholipid phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PtdIns(4,5)P(2)), which localizes in a well-defined region of the subapical plasma membrane. How the PtdIns(4,5)P(2) region is maintained is currently unclear. In principle, the formation of PtdIns(4,5)P(2) by PI4P 5-kinases can be counteracted by phospholipase C (PLC), which hydrolyzes PtdIns(4,5)P(2). Here, we show that fluorescence-tagged tobacco NtPLC3 displays a subapical plasma membrane distribution which frames that of fluorescence-tagged PI4P 5-kinases, suggesting that NtPLC3 may modulate PtdIns(4,5)P(2)-mediated processes in pollen tubes. The expression of a dominant negative NtPLC3 variant resulted in pollen tube tip swelling, consistent with a delimiting effect on PtdIns(4,5)P(2) production. When pollen tube morphologies were assessed as a quantitative read-out for PtdIns(4,5)P(2) function, NtPLC3 reverted the effects of a coexpressed PI4P 5-kinase, demonstrating that NtPLC3-mediated breakdown of PtdIns(4,5)P(2) antagonizes the effects of PtdIns(4,5)P(2) overproduction in vivo. When analyzed by spinning disc microscopy, fluorescence-tagged NtPLC3 displayed discontinuous membrane distribution omitting punctate areas of the membrane, suggesting that NtPLC3 is involved in the spatial restriction of plasma membrane domains also at the nanodomain scale. Together, the data indicate that NtPLC3 may contribute to the spatial restriction of PtdIns(4,5)P(2) in the subapical plasma membrane of pollen tubes.