A Hierarchical Cascade of Organellar Silencing and Their Regeneration Under Anaesthetic Stress in Plants

Anaesthetics temporarily inhibit neural activity by acting on voltage-gated sodium channels and GABA receptors. Although their neurological mechanisms are well-defined, their wider cellular effects, especially in non-neuronal systems, are inadequately understood. This study utilized Solanum lycopersicum plant's root apex cells as a transparent model to examine anaesthetic-induced subcellular alterations via live-cell fluorescence imaging, immunostaining, and super-resolution microscopy. These findings demonstrate the hierarchical cascade of organelle dysfunction, such as mitochondria, lysosomes, vesicle trafficking, and nuclear architectures under anaesthesia in plants. The nucleus is identified as the main controller of recovery potential and cellular fate. In a time dependent experiment, it is found that plant cells exposed to lidocaine for up to 4 h can still recover mitochondrial potential, lysosomal function, and nuclear integrity when anaesthesia is removed. However, beyond 4 h the damage, especially to the nucleus, is irreversible, and cells proceeded to cell death. The data further demonstrate that organelles can recover after brief exposure, but prolonged exposure stops recovery, resulting in the irreversible degradation of the nucleus leading to complete cell death. The results may help to uncover organelle-related dysfunction under anaesthetic toxicity and provide a clearer understanding for minimizing or reversing such damage.