Single-cell dynamics of the Arabidopsis inflorescence stem cells

The inflorescence meristem is the tiny structure that is  foundational to most of our food supply. A new work by Moreno-Ramírez et al. reveals insights into these little marvels through the use of single-nucleus transcriptomics. Their analysis identified 18 cell-type clusters that they assigned to known developmental domains by their expression of previously identified genes such as CUC2 and CUC3 (boundary domain), KAN1 (early-primordia), AP3 (floral identity) etc. The expression location and timing of many of these genes were analyzed. Along with mutant analysis, these data identified gene regulatory networks associated with various domains and activities in the meristem. The authors used trajectory inference (TI analysis, e.g., pseudotime analysis) to identify patterns of gene expression changes over developmental time in several tissues, such as the phloem, xylem, and vascular cambium. The analysis also revealed the earliest stages of cortex tissue formation in the developing primordia. These datasets will prove invaluable for future studies on plant reproductive development. (Summary by Mary Williams @PlantTeaching.bsky.social) Science Advances 10.1126/sciadv.aee2988