Guard cell-specific down-regulation of the sucrose transporter SUT1 leads to improved water use efficiency and reveals the interplay between carbohydrate metabolism and K+ accumulation in the regulation of stomatal opening
We engineering a guard cell-specific down-regulation of sucrose transporter (SUT1) gene. Transgenic plants leads to low sucrose content in guard cells, low stomatal conductance and reduced transpiration rate. Our results indicate that sucrose transport in guard cell could be used to obtain plants with greater water use efficiency.