BYPASS1 negatively regulates a root-derived signal that controls plant architecture.
Plant architecture is regulated by endogenous developmental programs, but it can also be strongly influenced by cues derived from the environment. For example, rhizosphere conditions such as water and nutrient availability affect shoot and root architecture; this implicates the root as a source of signals that can override endogenous developmental programs. Cytokinin, abscisic acid, and carotenoid derivatives have all been implicated as long-distance signals that can be derived from the root. However, little is known about how root-derived signaling pathways are regulated. Here, we show that BYPASS1 (BPS1), an Arabidopsis gene of unknown function, is required to prevent constitutive production of a root-derived graft-transmissible signal that is sufficient to inhibit leaf initiation, leaf expansion, and shoot apical meristem activity. We show that this root-derived signal is likely to be a novel carotenoid-derived molecule that can modulate both root and shoot architecture.
Department of Biology, University of Utah, 257 South 1400 East, Salt Lake City, Utah 84112, USA.
Jaimie M
JM
Van Norman
Rebecca L
RL
Frederick
Leslie E
LE
Sieburth
D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000254:growth & development*; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D017931:DNA Primers; D040461:Gene Components; D016296:Mutagenesis; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000502:physiology*; D018520:Plant Shoots / Q000254:growth & development*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000502:physiology*
D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D017931:DNA Primers