Abstract
Factors with a graded distribution can program fields of cells in a dose-dependent manner1,2, but no evidence has hitherto surfaced for such mechanisms in plants. In the Arabidopsis thaliana root, two PLETHORA (PLT) genes encoding AP2-domain transcription factors have been shown to maintain the activity of stem cells3. Here we show that a clade of four PLT homologues is necessary for root formation. Promoter activity and protein fusions of PLT homologues display gradient distributions with maxima in the stem cell area. PLT activities are largely additive and dosage dependent. High levels of PLT activity promote stem cell identity and maintenance; lower levels promote mitotic activity of stem cell daughters; and further reduction in levels is required for cell differentiation. Our findings indicate that PLT protein dosage is translated into distinct cellular responses.
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Acknowledgements
We thank the Netherlands Genomics Initiative (M.L.) and the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (C.G.) for funding, A. Shimotohno and J. M. Perez-Perez for sharing data and Frits Kindt for photography.
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Galinha, C., Hofhuis, H., Luijten, M. et al. PLETHORA proteins as dose-dependent master regulators of Arabidopsis root development. Nature 449, 1053–1057 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature06206
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nature06206
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