KIN10 promotes stomatal development through stabilization of the SPEECHLESS transcription factor (Nat. Commun.)
Plant Science Research Weekly
Plants communicate with the environment through stomata (i.e., pores found on leaf surfaces) and regulate gas exchange depending on internal and external cues by optimizing stomata density. Still, how plants integrate metabolic and environmental signals remain to be determined. Here, Han and colleagues…
Development and cell cycle dynamics of the root apical meristem in the fern Ceratopteris richardii (bioRxiv)
Plant Science Research Weekly
Roots are essential organs for nutrient and water uptake and have been extensively investigated in angiosperms. Many studies suggest that roots originated through convergent evolution in vascular plants, a clade that includes seed plants and ferns. Besides Arabidopsis and crops, little is known about…
Cuscuta australis (dodder) parasite eavesdrops on the host plants’ FT signals to flower (PNAS)
Plant Science Research Weekly
Plants sense environmental cues, such as day length, to induce flowering and successfully reproduce. An important mobile regulator of flowering is FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT). Upon floral induction, FT is transported from the leaves to the shoot apical meristem where it triggers flower development. Dodders…
Molecular regulation of meristem development in liverworts (Curr. Biol.)
Plant Science Research WeeklyPlants grow through meristems, pools of undifferentiated cells that produce and develop into all varieties of cell types. Flowering plants such as Arabidopsis regulate meristematic cell division through CLAVATA3/EMBRYOSURROUNDING REGION-related (CLE) peptide signaling, but the molecular mechanisms in…
Towards Uncovering the Developmental Mechanisms of Elaborate Petals: Nigella damascena as a Beginning
Blog, Research, The Plant Cell, The Plant Cell: In a NutshellZhang et al. explore the mechanisms underlying elaborate petal development and specialized character formation in Nigella damascena. Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.20.00330
By Rui Zhang, Xuehao Fu, Caiyao Zhao, Jie Cheng, Hongyan Shan, and Hongzhi Kong
Background: Petals can be simple or…
Cell-cell adhesion in plant grafting is facilitated by b-1,4-glucanases (Science) ($)
Plant Science Research WeeklyPlant grafting has been used in crop improvement for centuries and more recently to study systemic and long-distance signaling in the plant vascular system. In order to better understand graft compatibility and its mechanism, Notaguchi et al. used Nicotiana to study interfamily graft combinations. Interfamily…
The manifold actions of signaling peptides on subcellular dynamics of a receptor specify stomatal cell fate (eLife)
Plant Science Research WeeklyStomatal development requires cell-to-cell communication and follows one cell spacing, with a minimum of one cell space between two stomata. Key to this communication are the ERECTA and ERECTA LIKE (ERL) Leucine-Rich Repeat domain-Receptor Like kinases (LRR-RLKs) and their ligands, the EPIDERMAL PATTERNING…
DNA damage triggers reprogramming of differentiated cells into stem cells in Physcomitrella (Nature Plants) ($)
Plant Science Research WeeklyWounding and other types of cellular damage, such as DNA damage-induced stem cell death, trigger cellular reprogramming to confer stem cell identity to damage-adjacent cells, thus establishing a new stem cell niche capable of repairing the injury. Studies in angiosperm models have identified the phytohormone…
Lipo-chitooligosaccharides as regulatory signals of fungal growth and development (Nature Comms)
Plant Science Research WeeklyDuring symbiosis, the rhizobia bacteria rely on their lipo-chitooligosachharide signals (LCOs) to associate with plants. This signal is perceived by plant receptor like kinase, LysM-containing receptors which activate the common symbiosis signaling pathway (CSSM). Fungal symbiosis with plants has also…