Journal Article Ppublish
PubMed: 39700410 DOI: 10.1093/plcell/koae327
The molecular framework balancing growth and defense in response to plant elicitor peptide-induced signals in Arabidopsis.
Plant Cell 37(1)
Authors: Souvik Dhar, Soo Youn Kim, Hee-Ji Shin, Jongsung Park, Ji-Young Lee
Affiliations
- School of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Science, Seoul National University, 1 Gwanak-ro, Gwanak-gu, Seoul 08826, South Korea.
- School of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Science, Seoul National University, 1 Gwanak-ro, Gwanak-gu, Seoul 08826, South Korea. Plant Genomics and Breeding Institute, Seoul National University, 1 Gwanak-ro, Gwanak-gu, Seoul 08826, South Korea. Plant Immunity Research Center, Seoul National University, 1 Gwanak-ro, Gwanak-gu, Seoul 08826, South Korea.
Abstract
Elevated stress signaling compromises plant growth by suppressing proliferative and formative division in the meristem. Plant elicitor peptide, an endogenous danger signal triggered by biotic and abiotic stresses in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), suppresses proliferative division, alters xylem vessel organization, and disrupts cell-to-cell symplastic connections in roots. To gain insight into the dynamic molecular framework that modulates root development under elevated danger signals, we performed a time-course RNA-sequencing analysis of the root meristem after synthetic PEP1 treatment. Our analyses revealed that SALT TOLERANCE ZINC FINGER (STZ) and its homologs are a potential nexus between the stress response and proliferative cell cycle regulation. Through functional, phenotypic, and transcriptomic analyses, we observed that STZ differentially controls the cell cycle, cell differentiation, and stress response genes in various tissue layers of the root meristem. Moreover, we determined the STZ expression level critical for enabling the growth-defense tradeoff. These findings provide valuable information about the dynamic gene expression changes that occur upon perceiving danger signals in the root meristem and potential engineering strategies to generate stress-resilient plants.
MeSH
Cells, Genes, Growth, Stress, Physiological, Cell Cycle, Plant Cells