Potassium Transport and Signaling in Higher Plants

As one of the most important mineral nutrient elements, potassium (K + ) participates in many plant physiological processes and determines the yield and quality of crop production. In this review, we summarize K + signaling processes and K + transport regulation in higher plants, especially in plant responses to K + -deficiency stress. Plants perceive external K + fluctuations and generate the initial K + signal in root cells. This signal is transduced into the cytoplasm and encoded as Ca 2+ and reactive oxygen species signaling. K + -deficiency-induced signals are subsequently decoded by cytoplasmic sensors, which regulate the downstream transcriptional and posttranslational responses. Eventually, plants produce a series of adaptive events in both physiological and morphological alterations that help them survive K + deficiency.