Abstract
In the embryo of Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh., formation of the hypocotyl/root axis is initiated at the early-globular stage, recognizable as oriented expansion of formerly isodiametric cells. The process depends on the activity of the gene MONOPTEROS (MP); mp mutant embryos fail to produce hypocotyl and radicle. We have analyzed the morphology and anatomy of mp mutant plants throughout the Arabidopsis life cycle. Mutants form largely normal rosettes and root systems, but inflorescences either fail to form lateral flowers or these flowers are greatly reduced. Furthermore, the auxin transport capacity of inflorescence axes is impaired and the vascular strands in all analyzed organs are distorted. These features of the mutant phenotype suggest that the MP gene promotes cell axialization and cell file formation at multiple stages of plant development.
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Abbreviations
- GUS:
-
β-glucuronidase
- IAA:
-
indole acetic acid
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We thank R. Kahmann (Genetics Institute, University of Munich (LMU), Germany) and P. Engström (Dept. Physiol. Bot., University of Uppsala, Sweden) for generous support, F. Assaad, S. Ploense (Genetics Institute, University of Munich (LMU), Germany), G. Jürgens, W. Lukowitz (Inst. Dev. Genet., University of Tübingen, Germany), and M.A. Yund (UC, Berkeley, Cal., USA) for helpful suggestions on the manuscript, and L. Willmitzer (IGF, Berlin, Germany) for providing the ASUS1-GUS line. C.S.H. was supported by a predoctoral fellowship from the University of Munich (LMU), J.M. by a postdoctoral fellowship from the Royal Swedish Academy of Science. This work was supported by grant Bel374/1-3 from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft.
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Przemeck, G.K.H., Mattsson, J., Hardtke, C.S. et al. Studies on the role of the Arabidopsis gene MONOPTEROS in vascular development and plant cell axialization. Planta 200, 229–237 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00208313
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00208313