Salt stress in Plantago - The role of membranes, channels and pumps

In the present article the cellular mechanism of Na+ transport across the plasma membrane and tonoplast of root cells of Plantago media (salt sensitive) and Plantago maritima (salt tolerant) is discussed based on findings obtained mainly by patch clamp technique. It is conluded that the combination of Na+ induced channel closure together with the Na+ induced Na+/H+ antiporter forms an effective mechanism for sequestering Na+ in the vacuole of P. maritima, while tha salt-sensitive P. media lacks the ability to pump Na+ into the vacuole.