Nobutaka Mitsuda

Abstract Soil stresses affect crop yields and present global agricultural challenges1. Soil compaction triggers reduction in root length and radial expansion driven by the plant hormone ethylene2. Here we report how ethylene controls cell wall biosynthesis to promote root radial expansion. We demonstrate how soil compaction stress, via ethylene, upregulates Auxin Response Factor1 in the root cortex, which represses cellulose synthase (CESA) genes.

1Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-1800, USA 2Center for Gene Research, Nagoya University, Nagoya 464-8602, Japan 3Plant Genomics and Breeding Institute, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Republic of Korea 4Bioscience and Biotechnology Center, Nagoya University, Nagoya 464-8601, Japan 5Department of Botany, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan 6Department of Bioscience and Bioinformatics, Kyushu Institute of Technology,...

Abstract Cell wall patterning is central to determining the shape and function of plant cells. Protoxylem and metaxylem vessel cells deposit banded and pitted cell walls, respectively, which enable their distinctive water transport capabilities. Here, we show that the pitted cell wall pattern in metaxylem vessels is specified by transcriptional control of actin polymerization.