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PHASE TRANSITIONS

Redox control of flowering

Nature Chemical Biology volume 17, pages 504–505 (2021)Cite this article

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Using an interdisciplinary approach, hydrogen-peroxide-induced phase separation in the intrinsically disordered regions of the TERMINATING FLOWER transcription factor proteins was shown to regulate the shoot apical meristem through repression of the floral identity gene called ANANTHA.

Endogenous and environmental signals regulate the balance between the proliferation of central domain cells in the shoot apical meristem (SAM), which replenish the pools of pluripotent cells, with the differentiation of periphery cells into lateral organs6. The maturation of the meristem terminates with the transition to flowering, a process that is repressed by a mechanism involving the floral identity gene ANANTHA (AN) and TERMINATING FLOWER (TMF)7,8, a transcription factor that controls the flowering transition. Loss of TMF functions causes precocious expression of AN, forcing flower differentiation and the transformation of usually multiple-flowered primary inflorescences into a single flower6.

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Fig. 1: Oxidant-induced organization of TMF proteins into a condensate that leads to the repression of the floral transition in the shoot apical meristem.

References

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  1. School of Biosciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, UK

    Christine H. Foyer

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  1. Christine H. Foyer
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Correspondence to Christine H. Foyer.

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The author declares no competing interests.

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Foyer, C.H. Redox control of flowering. Nat Chem Biol 17, 504–505 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41589-021-00758-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41589-021-00758-x

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