Nucleolin level in plant root meristematic cells under chilling stress and recovery

Nucleolin and its homologues are multifunctional proteins which reside mainly in nucleoli of yeast, animal and plant cells. Hence, they are generally implicated in many stages of ribosome biosynthesis. In this study nucleolin was identified in root meristematic cell nucleoli of soybean plants subjected to chilling stress, recovered after chilling and under control conditions with the use of the immunogold electron microscopy technique. Soybean nucleoli exhibited various metabolic activities under these conditions (Stępiński, 2004). Current studies showed that the level of nucleolin, expressed as a number of gold grains per μm2, varied in particular subnucleolar regions in the soybean root meristematic cell nucleoli. Labeling density changed in these regions when plants were subjected to the given treatment. Most abundantly this protein was present in dense fibrillar component (DFC) around fibrillar centers (FCs) in the nucleoli of recovered plants, while in the nucleoli of stressed plants this region contained the lowest level of nucleolin. It can be supposed that nucleolin participates in ribosome biogenesis and its level is correlated with metabolic activity of soybean nucleoli – the more active nucleoli, the higher level of nucleolin and vice versa.

► The level and distribution of nucleolin in soybean nucleoli was studied. ► The level of nucleolin varied under control, chilling and recovery conditions. ► Nucleolin level was correlated with nucleolar activity. ► The higher level was under recovery, and the lowest – under chilling stress. ► Nucleolin amount also varied in particular regions of nucleolus.