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Stem Cell Maintenance and Abiotic Stress Response in Shoot Apical Meristem for Developmental Plasticity

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Abstract

The shoot apical meristem (SAM) serves as a non-drying reservoir of pluripotent stem cells to supply new daughter cells forming above-ground tissues and organs such as leaves, stems, flowers and fruits throughout the life cycle of plants. Accordingly, the homeostasis control of stem cell division and differentiation must be an essential core mechanism for harmonic growth and development of plants as multicellular higher eukaryotes. Unlike animals, plants are sessile organisms and thus constantly face environmental factors, including abiotic stresses. Therefore, post-embryonic development derived from stem cells in the SAM likely interacts with surrounding abiotic stresses for plant adaptation and plastic development. For this reason, this review provides the most recent findings regarding comprehensive signaling networks involved in stem cell maintenance in the SAM, and then describes how stem cell signaling is related with abiotic stress response through involvement of phytohormones and reactive oxygen species in the SAM.

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  1. Department of Biotechnology, Duksung Women’s University, Seoul, 01369, Korea

    Horim Lee

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Lee, H. Stem Cell Maintenance and Abiotic Stress Response in Shoot Apical Meristem for Developmental Plasticity. J. Plant Biol. 61, 358–365 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12374-018-0301-6

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