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Plants
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Plant Development
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Plant Development

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant Development and Morphogenesis".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2020) | Viewed by 14777

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Juan M. Debernardi

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Plant Sciences, University of California, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
Interests: plant molecular biology; molecular plant physiology; RNA silencing

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue aims to cover research on basic principles of plant development and its application in agriculture improvement.

Plants grow and produce new tissue and organs through their whole life cycle. Fertilization of the egg cell triggers a genetic developmental program that generates a complete embryo from the single celled zygote. After embryo germination, plants produce new organs from pool of stem cells (meristems) residing at the growing tips. At the meristems, robust but highly plastic genetic programs integrate multiple signals that allow for the adjustment of plant growth and shape according to the internal status of the plant and the environment.

The huge diversity of organs and shapes exiting in nature make plant excellent models to study fundamental developmental questions, such as the molecular and cellular mechanisms that generate complex biological shapes, or how variation in those mechanisms can lead to shape innovations during evolution. Moreover, the continuous and plastic growth at the meristems is a fantastic opportunity to study how developmental or environmental cues interact to generate shape plasticity within an organism.

In addition to our basic interest, modification of plant developmental processes plays a central role in agriculture improvement. The initial crop domestication eliminated traits of wild species linked with seed dispersal and created a new form of plant architecture. The Green Revolution produced spectacular increases in crop yields in part by the introduction of novel plant architectures into breeding programs. In recent years, several technological advances are allowing for a faster transfer of our developmental knowledge into agricultural research. Therefore, a deeper understanding of basic plant developmental processes is crucial to develop better crops to overcome the current agriculture challenges.

This Special Issue welcomes all types of papers (research papers, methods, and reviews) addressing key developmental processes in model or crop plant species. We encourage studies reporting examples of the successful translational research of the basic developmental process into important aspects of crop production.

Dr. Juan M. Debernardi
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Plants is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 5013 KiB  
Article
The CBL-Interacting Protein Kinase NtCIPK23 Positively Regulates Seed Germination and Early Seedling Development in Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.)
by Sujuan Shi, Lulu An, Jingjing Mao, Oluwaseun Olayemi Aluko, Zia Ullah, Fangzheng Xu, Guanshan Liu, Haobao Liu and Qian Wang
Plants 2021, 10(2), 323; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants10020323 - 08 Feb 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2135
Abstract
CBL-interacting protein kinase (CIPK) family is a unique group of serine/threonine protein kinase family identified in plants. Among this family, AtCIPK23 and its homologs in some plants are taken as a notable group for their importance in ions transport and stress responses. However, [...] Read more.
CBL-interacting protein kinase (CIPK) family is a unique group of serine/threonine protein kinase family identified in plants. Among this family, AtCIPK23 and its homologs in some plants are taken as a notable group for their importance in ions transport and stress responses. However, there are limited reports on their roles in seedling growth and development, especially in Solanaceae plants. In this study, NtCIPK23, a homolog of AtCIPK23 was cloned from Nicotiana tabacum. Expression analysis showed that NtCIPK23 is mainly expressed in the radicle, hypocotyl, and cotyledons of young tobacco seedlings. The transcriptional level of NtCIPK23 changes rapidly and spatiotemporally during seed germination and early seedling growth. To study the biological function of NtCIPK23 at these stages, the overexpressing and CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knock-out (ntcipk23) tobacco lines were generated. Phenotype analysis indicated that knock-out of NtCIPK23 significantly delays seed germination and the appearance of green cotyledon of young tobacco seedling. Overexpression of NtCIPK23 promotes cotyledon expansion and hypocotyl elongation of young tobacco seedlings. The expression of NtCIPK23 in hypocotyl is strongly upregulated by darkness and inhibited under light, suggesting that a regulatory mechanism of light might underlie. Consistently, a more obvious difference in hypocotyl length among different tobacco materials was observed in the dark, compared to that under the light, indicating that the upregulation of NtCIPK23 contributes greatly to the hypocotyl elongation. Taken together, NtCIPK23 not only enhances tobacco seed germination, but also accelerate early seedling growth by promoting cotyledon greening rate, cotyledon expansion and hypocotyl elongation of young tobacco seedlings. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Development)
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18 pages, 3180 KiB  
Article
Sugar and Hormone Dynamics and the Expression Profiles of SUT/SUC and SWEET Sugar Transporters during Flower Development in Petunia axillaris
by Junaid Iftikhar, Meiling Lyu, Zhuoyi Liu, Nasir Mehmood, Nigarish Munir, Mohamed A. A. Ahmed, Wajjiha Batool, Mehtab Muhammad Aslam, Yuan Yuan and Binghua Wu
Plants 2020, 9(12), 1770; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9121770 - 14 Dec 2020
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 3069
Abstract
Flowering is the first committed step of plant sexual reproduction. While the developing flower is a strong sink requiring large quantity of sugars from photosynthetic source tissues, this process is under-temper-spatially controlled via hormone signaling pathway and nutrient availability. Sugar transporters SUT/SUC and [...] Read more.
Flowering is the first committed step of plant sexual reproduction. While the developing flower is a strong sink requiring large quantity of sugars from photosynthetic source tissues, this process is under-temper-spatially controlled via hormone signaling pathway and nutrient availability. Sugar transporters SUT/SUC and SWEET mediate sugars movement across membranes and play a significant role in various physiological processes, including reproductive organ development. In Petunia axillaris, a model ornamental plant, 5 SUT/SUC and 36 SWEET genes are identified in the current version of the genome. Analysis of their gene structure and chromosomal locations reveal that SWEET family is moderately expanded. Most of the transporter genes are abundantly expressed in the flower than in other organs. During the five flower developmental stages, transcript levels of PaSUT1, PaSUT3, PaSWEET13c, PaSWEET9a, PaSWEET1d, PaSWEET5a and PaSWEET14a increase with the maturation of the flower and reach their maximum in the fully open flowers. PaSWEET9c, the nectar-specific PhNEC1 orthologous, is expressed in matured and fully opened flowers. Moreover, determination of sugar concentrations and phytohormone dynamics in flowers at the five developmental stages shows that glucose is the predominant form of sugar in young flowers at the early stage but depletes at the later stage, whereas sucrose accumulates only in maturated flowers prior to the corolla opening. On the other hand, GA3 content and to a less extent IAA and zeatin decreases with the flower development; however, JA, SA and ABA display a remarkable peak at mid- or later flower developmental stage. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Development)
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26 pages, 3635 KiB  
Article
Genome-Wide Characterization and Expression of Two-Component System Genes in Cytokinin-Regulated Gall Formation in Zizania latifolia
by Lili He, Feng Zhang, Xiaozhen Wu, Yanmei Hu, LiLi Dong, Walter Dewitte and Bo Wen
Plants 2020, 9(11), 1409; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9111409 - 22 Oct 2020
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 2276
Abstract
The thickening of Zizania latifolia shoots, referred to as gall formation, depends on infection with the fungal endophyte Ustilago esculenta. The swollen and juicy shoots are a popular vegetable in Asia. A key role for cytokinin action in this process was postulated. [...] Read more.
The thickening of Zizania latifolia shoots, referred to as gall formation, depends on infection with the fungal endophyte Ustilago esculenta. The swollen and juicy shoots are a popular vegetable in Asia. A key role for cytokinin action in this process was postulated. Here, trans-zeatin stimulated swelling in fungi-infected Z. latifolia. A two-component system (TCS) linked cytokinin binding to receptors with transcriptional regulation in the nucleus and played important roles in diverse biological processes. We characterized 69 TCS genes encoding for 25 histidine kinase/histidine-kinase-like (HK(L)) (21 HKs and 4 HKLs), 8 histidine phosphotransfer proteins (HP) (5 authentic and 3 pseudo), and 36 response regulators (RR; 14 type A, 14 type B, 2 type C, and 6 pseudo) in the genome of Z. latifolia. These TCS genes have a close phylogenetic relationship with their rice counterparts. Nineteen duplicated TCS gene pairs were found and the ratio of nonsynonymous to synonymous mutations indicated that a strong purifying selection acted on these duplicated genes, leading to few mutations during evolution. Finally, ZlCHK1, ZlRRA5, ZIRRA9, ZlRRA10, ZlPRR1, and ZlPHYA expression was associated with gall formation. Among them, ARR5, ARR9, and ZlPHYA are quickly induced by trans-zeatin, suggesting a role for cytokinin signaling in shoot swelling of Z. latifolia. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Development)
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18 pages, 6746 KiB  
Article
Tumorous Stem Development of Brassica Juncea: A Complex Regulatory Network of Stem Formation and Identification of Key Genes in Glucosinolate Biosynthesis
by Mengyao Li, Fangjie Xie, Jie Li, Bo Sun, Ya Luo, Yong Zhang, Qing Chen, Yan Wang, Fen Zhang, Yunting Zhang, Yuanxiu Lin, Xiaorong Wang and Haoru Tang
Plants 2020, 9(8), 1006; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9081006 - 09 Aug 2020
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2987
Abstract
Stem mustard is a stem variety of mustard, an important Brassica vegetable. The formation and development of the tumorous stem, which is the key organ for the direct yield and quality, is a complex biological process involving morphogenesis, material accumulation and gene regulation. [...] Read more.
Stem mustard is a stem variety of mustard, an important Brassica vegetable. The formation and development of the tumorous stem, which is the key organ for the direct yield and quality, is a complex biological process involving morphogenesis, material accumulation and gene regulation. In this study, we demonstrated through anatomical studies that stem swelling is mainly dependent on the increase in the number of cells and the volume of parenchyma cells in the cortex and pith. To further understand transcript and metabolic changes during stem swelling, we obtained 27,901 differentially expressed genes, of which 671 were specifically detected using transcriptome sequencing technology in all four stages of stem swelling. Functional annotation identified enrichment for genes involved in photosynthesis, energy metabolism, cell growth, sulfur metabolism and glucosinolate biosynthesis. Glucosinolates are a group of nitrogen- and sulfur-containing secondary metabolites, which largely exist in the Cruciferous vegetables. HPLC analysis of the contents and components of glucosinolates in four different stem development stages revealed eight glucosinolates, namely, three aliphatic glucosinolates (sinigrin, glucoalyssin and gluconapin), four indole glucosinolates (4-hydroxyglucobrassicin, glucobrassicin, 4-methoxyglucobrassicin and neoglucobrassicin) and one aromatic glucosinolate (gluconasturtiin). All these types of glucosinolates showed a significant downward trend during the stem swelling period. The content of aliphatic glucosinolates was the highest, with sinigrin being the main component. In addition, qPCR was used to validate the expression of nine genes involved in glucosinolate biosynthesis. Most of these genes were down-regulated during stem swelling in qPCR, which is consistent with transcriptome data. These data provide a basic resource for further molecular and genetic research on Brassica juncea. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Development)
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17 pages, 3227 KiB  
Article
Histological, Physiological and Transcriptomic Analysis Reveal Gibberellin-Induced Axillary Meristem Formation in Garlic (Allium sativum)
by Hongjiu Liu, Yanbin Wen, Mingming Cui, Xiaofang Qi, Rui Deng, Jingcao Gao and Zhihui Cheng
Plants 2020, 9(8), 970; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9080970 - 31 Jul 2020
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 3473
Abstract
The number of cloves in a garlic bulb is controlled by axillary meristem differentiation, which directly determines the propagation efficiency. Our previous study showed that injecting garlic plants with gibberellins (GA3) solution significantly increased clove number per bulb. However, the physiological [...] Read more.
The number of cloves in a garlic bulb is controlled by axillary meristem differentiation, which directly determines the propagation efficiency. Our previous study showed that injecting garlic plants with gibberellins (GA3) solution significantly increased clove number per bulb. However, the physiological and molecular mechanism of GA-induced axillary bud formation is still unknown. Herein, dynamic changes in histology, phytohormones, sugars and related genes expression at 2, 4, 8, 16 and 32 days after treatment (DAT) were investigated. Histological results indicated two stages (axillary meristem initiation and dormancy) were in the period of 0–30 days after GA3 treatment. Application of GA3 caused a significant increase of GA3 and GA4, and the downregulation of AsGA20ox expression. Furthermore, the change trends in zeatin riboside (ZR) and soluble sugar were the same, in which a high level of ZR at 2 DAT and high content of soluble sugar, glucose and fructose at 4 DAT were recorded, and a low level of ZR and soluble sugar arose at 16 and 32 DAT. Overall, injection of GA3 firstly caused the downregulation of AsGA20ox, a significant increase in the level of ZR and abscisic acid (ABA), and the upregulation of AsCYP735 and AsAHK to activate axillary meristem initiation. Low level of ZR and soluble sugar and a high level of sucrose maintained axillary meristem dormancy. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Development)
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