ABSTRACT: Background: Abscisic acid (ABA) regulates various developmental processes and stress responses over both short (i.e. hours or days) and longer (i.e. months or seasons) time frames. To elucidate the transcriptional regulation of early responses of grapevine (Vitis vinifera) responding to ABA, different organs of grape (berries, shoot tips, leaves, roots and cell cultures) were treated with 10 μM (S)-(+)-ABA for 2 h. NimbleGen whole genome microarrays of Vitis vinifera were used to determine the effects of ABA on organ-specific mRNA expression patterns. Results: Transcriptomic analysis revealed 839 genes whose transcript abundances varied significantly in a specific organ in response to ABA treatment. No single gene exhibited the same changes in transcript abundance across all organs in response to ABA. The biochemical pathways affected by ABA were identified using the Cytoscape program with the BiNGO plug-in software. The results indicated that these 839 genes were involved in several biological processes such as flavonoid metabolism, response to reactive oxygen species, response to light, and response to temperature stimulus. ABA affected ion and water transporters, particularly in the root. The protein amino acid phosphorylation process was significantly overrepresented in shoot tips and roots treated with ABA. ABA affected mRNA abundance of genes (CYP707As, UGTs, and PP2Cs) associated with ABA degradation, conjugation, and the ABA signaling pathway. ABA also significantly affected the expression of several transcription factors (e.g. AP2/ERF, MYC/MYB, and bZIP/AREB). The greatest number of significantly differentially expressed genes was observed in the roots followed by cell cultures, leaves, berries, and shoot tips, respectively. Each organ had a unique set of gene responses to ABA. Conclusions: This study examined the short-term effects of ABA on different organs of grapevine. The responses of each organ were unique indicating that ABA signaling varies with the organ. Understanding the ABA responses in an organ-specific manner is crucial to fully understand hormone action and plant responses to water deficit. Shoot tips and berries samples were collected at the University of California, Davis, CA, USA (2010); cell culture samples were sampled at Oregon State University, OR, USA (2010); roots and leaf samples were collected at the University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, NV, USA (2011). Three independent experimental (and biological) replicates were harvested to compare between ABA-treated and untreated samples. Tissue was derived from Vitis vinifera L. cv. Cabernet Sauvignon.
