Cell type and organelle specificity in cytokinin and auxin signalling and metabolism during Arabidopsis lateral root initiation

The formation of lateral roots (LRs) determines plant root system architecture (RSA), which is crucial for plant stability and uptake of nutrients and water from the soil, and therefore essential for plant development.

Current knowledge suggests that LR development is a highly complex process influenced by both intrinsic and external factors, controlled by an extensive regulatory genetic network, and relying on intricate crosstalk between multiple cells and tissues.

The plant hormones auxin (indole-3-acetic acid, IAA) and cytokinins (CKs) function as master regulators of LR development, often acting antagonistically, but sometimes also synergistically.

The intrinsic programme of LR development can also be affected by other plant growth regulators and by exogenous factors, such as soil quality, temperature, water and nutrient status.However, LR studies have mainly been conducted at the whole plant and tissue levels.

With this project we aim to reach a deeper understanding of the cellular and sub-cellular processes involved in LR development, and for the first time decipher the roles played by different organelles in these processes.

To achieve these ambitious aims, we will establish new tools and methods to analyse plant hormones, metabolites, proteins and mRNA in individual cells and organelles, and use these methods to understand the cellular processes that direct LR initiation in the model plant species Arabidopsis thaliana.