Recent Posts

Review: Tackling plant phosphate starvation by the roots (Devel. Cell)

The root is remarkably responsive to nutrient status of both the local environment and the whole plant. These external and internal factors affect the expression of transporters, interactions with mycorrhizal symbionts and also the overall pattern of growth and development of the root system. In this…

The lateral root cap acts as an auxin sink that controls meristem size (Curr Biol)

During root growth, cellular activities need to be coordinated across tissues. Mambro et al. have identified molecular mechanisms involved in root apical meristem maintenance by auxin homeostasis regulation in lateral root cap (LRC) cells. The cytokinin response regulator ARR1 regulates expression of…

Review: Brassinosteroid signaling in plant development and adaptation to stress ($) (Development)

In this new review, Riverola et al. highlight the significance of the phytohormone brassinosteroid in plant development and responses to stress. The authors discuss BRL1, LRR-RLK receptor mediated signaling mechanism that is crucial for root development and stress response. This signaling mechanism varies…

Four auxin-like compounds can selectively regulate plant development (PNAS)

Plants have developed their own strategies to ensure developmental plasticity, such as the use of phytohormones. The phytohormone auxin affects multiple aspects of plant development. Auxin is perceived via a co-receptor complex called TIR1/AFB-AUX/IAA, and SCF TIR1/AFB degrades AUX/IAA proteins to liberate…

Root branching is not induced by auxins in Selaginella moellendorffii (Front Plant Sci)

Auxin is crucial for root development across angiosperms. All the auxin signal transduction pathway components are conserved in land plants, but their role is still not completely clear in early diverged lineages. Here, Fang et al. present a comprehensive analysis of exogenous auxin addition and polar…

An aberrant protein phosphatase 2C confers abscisic acid tolerance and drives high transpiration during drought conditions in a parasitic plant, Striga ($) (Nature Plants)

Striga hermonthica is a parasitic plant which infects major crops in arid environments. The rate of transpiration in Striga is higher than that of the host plant, thus maintaining a water potential gradient from the host to the Striga plant. Until recently, the exact mechanism has been poorly understood.…

ABA Balances Plant Growth and Metabolism

Yoshida et al. investigate how the phytohormone ABA balances normal growth and metabolism. https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.18.00766. By Takuya Yoshida and Alisdair R. Fernie, Max-Planck-Institut für Molekulare Pflanzenphysiologie.   Background: Abscisic acid (ABA) is a plant hormone that…

Review: Cytokinin – A developing story (Trends Plant Sci) ($)

With its diverse chemical structures, the phytohormone cytokinin is significant from embryogenesis to the maturation of plants. In this review, Wybouw and De Rybel highlight in detail cytokinin signaling in multiple plant developmental process including shoot, flower, stomata, root and vascular development.…

ARF5/MONOPTEROS directly regulates miR390 expression in the Arabidopsis thaliana primary root meristem (Plant Direct)

Previous studies have indicated that auxin controls gene expression via regulatory transcriptional networks, mediated by a family of DNA-binding auxin response factors (ARFs) that bind to auxin response DNA elements (AuxREs) in the promoters of genes. In this study, Dastidar et al. investigated the…