The Craterostigma plantagineum protein kinase CpWAK1 interacts with pectin and integrates different environmental signals in the cell wall

MAIN CONCLUSION: The cell wall protein CpWAK1 interacts with pectin, participates in decoding cell wall signals, and induces different downstream responses. ABSTRACT: Cell wall-associated protein kinases (WAKs) are transmembrane receptor kinases. In the desiccation-tolerant resurrection plant Craterostigma plantagineum, CpWAK1 has been shown to be involved in stress responses and cell expansion by forming a complex with the C. plantagineum glycine-rich protein1 (CpGRP1). This prompted us to extend the studies of WAK genes in C. plantagineum. The phylogenetic analyses of WAKs from C. plantagineum and from other species suggest that these genes have been duplicated after species divergence. Expression profiles indicate that CpWAKs are involved in various biological processes, including dehydration-induced responses and SA- and JA-related reactions to pathogens and wounding. CpWAK1 shows a high affinity for “egg-box” pectin structures. ELISA assays revealed that the binding of CpWAKs to pectins is modulated by CpGRP1 and it depends on the apoplastic pH. The formation of CpWAK multimers is the prerequisite for the CpWAK–pectin binding. Different pectin extracts lead to opposite trends of CpWAK–pectin binding in the presence of Ca(2+) at pH 8. These observations demonstrate that CpWAKs can potentially discriminate and integrate cell wall signals generated by diverse stimuli, in concert with other elements, such as CpGRP1, pH(apo), Ca(2+)([apo]), and via the formation of CpWAK multimers. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00425-021-03609-0.