Modification of cell proliferation patterns alters leaf vein architecture in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Formation of leaf vascular pattern requires regulation of a number of cellular processes, including cell proliferation. To assess the role of cell proliferation during vein order formation, leaf development in genetic lines exhibiting aberrant cell proliferation patterns due to altered expression patterns of ANT and ICK1 genes was analyzed. Modification of cell proliferation patterns alters the number of higher order veins and the number of minor tertiary veins remodeled as intersecondary veins in Arabidopsis rosette leaves.

WUSCHEL induces shoot stem cell activity and developmental plasticity in the root meristem.

Most of the plant shoot originates f om a small group of stem cells, which in A abidopsis are specified by WUSCHEL (WUS). It is unknown whether these cells have an inrinsic potential to generate shoot tissues, or whether differentiation is guided by signals from more mature tissues. He e we show that WUS expression in the root induced shoot stem cell identity and leaf development (without additional cues), floral development (together with LEAFY), or embryogenesis (in response to increased auxin).

The ethanol switch: a tool for tissue-specific gene induction during plant development.

Controlled gene expression in time and space is a powerful tool for the analysis of gene function during plant development. Here, we report ethanol inducible gene expression in defined sub-domains of the shoot apical and floral meristems. For this, expression of an ethanol-regulated transcription factor, ALCR, is restricted to precise domains using specific promoters.