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The mechanism of cold perception by plants is still poorly understood. It was found that temperature drop evokes changes in the activity of ion pumps and channels, which leads to plasma membrane depolarization. The nature of the primary step of its action (alteration in membrane composition, transient influx of Ca2+ etc.,) has not been elicited yet. Our electrophysiological experiments conducted on the liverwort Conocephalum conicum showed that its cells respond not only to sudden cooling but also to menthol, generating depolarization of the plasma membrane and action potentials (APs). Similar results are well documented in mammals; cold or “cooling compounds” including menthol cause activation of thermosenstitive channel TRPM8 permeable to Ca2+ and generation of AP series. TRP receptors are detected, among others, in green and brown algae. Possible existence of TRPM8-like channel-receptor in Conocephalum conicum is discussed here.

As a liverwort Conocephalum conicum belongs to the oldest terrestrial plants1 and is phylogenetically located between green algae and higher plants. Recent patch-clamp recordings on Conocephalum vacuoles2,3 demonstrate ion channels very similar to higher plants and clearly different from vacuolar ion channels described in green algae. Here we summarize the features of a vacuolar cation channel and a vacuolar anion channel that both are common in terrestrial plants but are not detected in green algae, and we speculate about the molecular identity of these channels in the liverwort Conocephalum.

Glass microelectrodes were inserted into Physcomitrella patens gametophyte leaves and action potentials (APs) were recorded in response to sudden illumination as well as after darkening, i.e., when the dark-induced membrane depolarization crossed a threshold. Application of 5 mM La(3+) (a calcium channel inhibitor), 10 mM TEA(+) (a potassium channel inhibitor) and increased free Ca(2+) resulted in a loss of excitability. Lack of Ca(2+) in the external medium did not prevent APs from occurring. It was concluded that during light- dark-induced excitation of Physcomitrella patens, APs might rely upon calcium influxes from the intracellular compartments. APs were not blocked by the proton pump inhibitors (DES, DCCD), although the resting potential (RP) diminished significantly.