Janlo M. Robil

1 INTRODUCTION Postembryonic plant development depends on the activity of plant stem cells, found in specific tissues called meristems. Since the discovery of the essentiality of boron (Warington, 1923), its role in meristem development was found to be critical. This is equally true for above- and below-ground meristems. The root reacts first to a lack of boron with inhibition of primary and lateral root growth (Warington, 1923).

Abstract The phytohormone auxin has been shown to be of pivotal importance in growth and development of land plants. The underlying molecular players involved in auxin biosynthesis, transport, and signaling are quite well understood in Arabidopsis. However, functional characterizations of auxin-related genes in economically important crops, specifically maize and rice, are still limited.