From seed germination to flowering, light controls plant development via the pigment phytochrome

  • J. Chory*
  • , M. Chatterjee
  • , R. K. Cook
  • , T. Elich
  • , C. Fankhauser
  • , J. Li
  • , P. Nagpal
  • , M. Neff
  • , A. Pepper
  • , D. Poole
  • , J. Reed
  • , V. Vitart
  • *Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articlepeer-review

177 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Plant growth and development are regulated by interactions between the environment and endogenous developmental programs. Of the various environmental factors controlling plant development, light plays an especially important role, in photosynthesis, in seasonal and diurnal time sensing, and as a cue for altering developmental pattern. Recently, several laboratories have devised a variety of genetic screens using Arabidopsis thaliana to dissect the signal transduction pathways of the various photoreceptor systems. Genetic analysis demonstrates that light responses are not simply endpoints of linear signal transduction pathways but are the result of the integration of information from a variety of photoreceptors through a complex network of interacting signaling components. These signaling components include the red/far-red light receptors, phytochromes, at least one blue light receptor, and negative regulatory genes (DET, COP, and FUS) that act downstream from the photoreceptors in the nucleus. In addition, asteroid hormone, brassinolide, also plays a role in light- regulated development and gene expression in Arabidopsis. These molecular and genetic data are allowing us to construct models of the mechanisms by which light controls development and gene expression in Arabidopsis. In the future, this knowledge can be used as a framework for understanding how all land plants respond to changes in their environment.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)12066-12071
Number of pages6
JournalProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Volume93
Issue number22
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 29 Oct 1996

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