ARS | Publication request: REGULATION OF DEVELOPMENTAL TRANSITIONS

Submitted to: Current Opinion in Plant Biology
Publication Type: Review Article
Publication Acceptance Date: November 19, 2004
Publication Date: December 1, 2004
Citation: Chuck, G.S., Hake, S.C. 2004. Regulation of developmental transitions. Current Opinion in Plant Biology, 8(1):67-70.

Technical Abstract: Plant form changes over time in response to a variety of different factors. Such changes can be subtle and occur gradually or can be dramatic and occur suddenly. The latter situation is commonly referred to as phase change, and several groups have taken advantage of two model plant systems, maize and Arabidopsis, to study the genetics and molecular biology of this process. One central question regarding phase change is where the locus of change initiates within the plant. Because plant form is dependent on the activity of meristems, it is believed that phase change must involve a meristem-dependent component. Then again, developmental transitions are intricately tied to environmental factors that might influence the meristem indirectly. Several newly identified genes that are involved in these pathways reveal how the balance of meristem and non-meristem factors brings about the remarkable morphological transitions that characterize phase change.