Analyzing lateral root development: how to move forward.
Roots are important to plants for a wide variety of processes, including nutrient and water uptake, anchoring and mechanical support, storage functions, and as the major interface between the plant and various biotic and abiotic factors in the soil environment. Therefore, understanding the development and architecture of roots holds potential for the manipulation of root traits to improve the productivity and sustainability of agricultural systems and to better understand and manage natural ecosystems. While lateral root development is a traceable process along the primary root and different stages can be found along this longitudinal axis of time and development, root system architecture is complex and difficult to quantify. Here, we comment on assays to describe lateral root phenotypes and propose ways to move forward regarding the description of root system architecture, also considering crops and the environment.
Division of Plant and Crop Sciences, School of Biosciences, University of Nottingham, Loughborough, Leicestershire LE12 5RD, United Kingdom. Ive.De_Smet@nottingham.ac.uk
Ive
I
De Smet
Philip J
PJ
White
A Glyn
AG
Bengough
Lionel
L
Dupuy
Boris
B
Parizot
Ilda
I
Casimiro
Renze
R
Heidstra
Marta
M
Laskowski
Marc
M
Lepetit
Frank
F
Hochholdinger
Xavier
X
Draye
Hanma
H
Zhang
Martin R
MR
Broadley
Benjamin
B
Péret
John P
JP
Hammond
Hidehiro
H
Fukaki
Sacha
S
Mooney
Jonathan P
JP
Lynch
Phillipe
P
Nacry
Ulrich
U
Schurr
Laurent
L
Laplaze
Philip
P
Benfey
Tom
T
Beeckman
Malcolm
M
Bennett
D008962:Models, Theoretical; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000254:growth & development*