title: Plant developmental transitions: the role of microRNAs and sugars.
abstract: What determines the rate at which a multicellular organism ages is a mystery in biology. In plants the changes in morphological and physiological traits serve as markers for the developmental transitions. Mutant characterizations and genetic analyses in Arabidopsis thaliana delineate an evolutionarily conserved, microRNA156 (miR156)-guided timing mechanism that temporally regulates many aspects of biological processes during development. Recent studies now reveal that sugar metabolites, the products of photosynthesis, feed into this developmental timer by regulating miR156 levels, thereby ensuring that each developmental transition occurs under favorable conditions.
authors.affiliation: National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Shanghai 200032, People's Republic of China; University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Sha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Shanghai 200032, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Heng
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lian
authors.affiliation: National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Shanghai 200032, People's Republic of China; School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai 200031, People's Republic of China. Electronic address: jwwang@sibs.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Jia-Wei
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D050260:Carbohydrate Metabolism; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D035683:MicroRNAs / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D063245:Plant Development; D018749:RNA, Plant / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D035683:MicroRNAs; D018749:RNA, Plant