The phloem is a complex tissue, made of several cell types, including companion cells and sieve elements. It plays an important role in long-distance transport and allocation of a number of metabolites and macromolecules. The sieve elements display specific structures yet uncharacterized and of unknown function. For instance the function of the phloem specific PP2 proteins (Phloem Protein 2) that have been described for long in the sieve elements is still unclear. PP2 proteins present lectin activity and bind to phloem sap proteins, suggesting a role in the transport of macromolecules in the phloem. We have investigated the function of two members of this family, PP2-A1 and PP2-A2 in the model species Arabidopsis thaliana. Different approaches have been undertaken to study these proteins: a cytological approach, the research of partners, and the study of downregulated and upregulated lines for the PP2-A1 and PP2-A2 genes. Localization studies of PP2-A1 fused to GFP-derived fluorescent tags have been realized by confocal laser scanning microscopy in the companion cells and the sieve elements; they showed that PP2-A1 presents a nucleocytoplasmic localization in the companion cells, whereas it forms fixed aggregates in the sieve elements. It suggested that PP2-A1 is anchored to the plasma membrane or to organelles inside the sieve elements. Similar results were obtained for PP2-A2. Making use of this study to accurately identify companion cells and sieve elements in vivo, and using additional subcellular fluorescent markers, we realized a fine mapping of companion cells and sieve elements in vivo. This study revealed the presence of numerous organelles of unknown identity at the periphery of the sieve elements, suggesting an important activity in those cells consistent with recent proteomics analysis of the sieve tubes. The study of plants overexpressing tagged versions of PP2-A1 and PP2-A2 enabled to observe an altered phenotype with delayed flowering and increased biomass, suggesting that PP2-A1 and PP2-A2 may play a role in long distance signalling. This work illustrates the complexity of phloem cell organization and functions, bringing new elements on long distance signalling pathway used by the plants to coordinate their growth and development.
