WOX5–IAA17 feedback circuit-mediated cellular auxin response is crucial for the patterning of root stem cell niches in Arabidopsis

Tian, Huiyu; Wabnik, Krzysztof; Niu, Tiantian; Li, Hanbing; Yu, Qianqian; Pollmann, Stephan; Vanneste, Steffen; Govaerts, Willy; Rolčík, Jakub; Geisler, Markus; Friml, Jiří; Ding, Zhaojun

doi:10.1093/mp/sst118

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Journal article

WOX5–IAA17 feedback circuit-mediated cellular auxin response is crucial for the patterning of root stem cell niches in Arabidopsis

Tian, Huiyu The Key Laboratory of Plant Cell Engineering and Germplasm Innovation, Ministry of Education, School of Life Sciences, Shandong University, Jinan, China
Wabnik, Krzysztof Department of Plant Systems Biology, VIB and Department of Plant Biotechnology and Bio-informatics, Ghent University, Belgium
Niu, Tiantian The Key Laboratory of Plant Cell Engineering and Germplasm Innovation, Ministry of Education, School of Life Sciences, Shandong University, Jinan, China
Li, Hanbing Department of Biochemistry, University of Missouri, Columbia, USA
Yu, Qianqian The Key Laboratory of Plant Cell Engineering and Germplasm Innovation, Ministry of Education, School of Life Sciences, Shandong University, Jinan, China
Pollmann, Stephan Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Lehrstuhl für Pflanzenphysiologie, Germany - Centro de Biotecnología y Genómica de Plantas (UPM–INIA), Madrid, Spain
Vanneste, Steffen Department of Plant Systems Biology, VIB and Department of Plant Biotechnology and Bio-informatics, Ghent University, Belgium
Govaerts, Willy Department of Applied Mathematics and Computer Science, Ghent University, Belgium
Rolčík, Jakub Laboratory of Growth Regulators, Faculty of Science, Palacký University, Olomouc, Czech Republic
Geisler, Markus Department of Biology, Plant Biology, University of Fribourg, Switzerland
Friml, Jiří Department of Plant Systems Biology, VIB and Department of Plant Biotechnology and Bio-informatics, Ghent University, Belgium - Institute of Science and Technology Austria (IST Austria), Klosterneuburg, Austria
Ding, Zhaojun The Key Laboratory of Plant Cell Engineering and Germplasm Innovation, Ministry of Education, School of Life Sciences, Shandong University, Jinan, China - Department of Plant Systems Biology, VIB and Department of Plant Biotechnology and Bio-informatics, Ghent University, Belgium

02.01.2014

Published in:

Molecular Plant. - 2014, vol. 7, no. 2, p. 277–289

English In plants, the patterning of stem cell-enriched meristems requires a graded auxin response maximum that emerges from the concerted action of polar auxin transport, auxin biosynthesis, auxin metabolism, and cellular auxin response machinery. However, mechanisms underlying this auxin response maximum-mediated root stem cell maintenance are not fully understood. Here, we present unexpected evidence that WUSCHEL-RELATED HOMEOBOX 5 (WOX5) transcription factor modulates expression of auxin biosynthetic genes in the quiescent center (QC) of the root and thus provides a robust mechanism for the maintenance of auxin response maximum in the root tip. This WOX5 action is balanced through the activity of indole-3-acetic acid 17 (IAA17) auxin response repressor. Our combined genetic, cell biology, and computational modeling studies revealed a previously uncharacterized feedback loop linking WOX5-mediated auxin production to IAA17-dependent repression of auxin responses. This WOX5–IAA17 feedback circuit further assures the maintenance of auxin response maximum in the root tip and thereby contributes to the maintenance of distal stem cell (DSC) populations. Our experimental studies and in silico computer simulations both demonstrate that the WOX5–IAA17 feedback circuit is essential for the maintenance of auxin gradient in the root tip and the auxin-mediated root DSC differentiation.

Faculty

Faculté des sciences et de médecine

Department

Département de Biologie

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