Slowly activating anion channel currents were discovered at micromolar ‘cytoplasmic’ Ca2+ during patch-clamp measurements on guard-cell protoplasts of Vicia faba and Xanthium strumarium. They activated at potentials as low as −200 Mv, with time constants between 5 and 60 s, and no inactivation. The broad voltage dependence exhibited a current maximum near −40 mV. The single-channel open time was in the order of seconds, and the unitary conductance was 33 ps, similar to that of the already described ‘quick’ anion channel of guard cells. Because of its activity at low potentials, the slow anion channel may be essential for the depolarization of the plasmalemma that is required for salt efflux during stomatal closing.
