PpSCARECROW1 (PpSCR1) regulates leaf blade and mid-vein development in Physcomitrium patens.

In plants, asymmetric cell divisions result in distinct cell fates forming large and small daughter cells, adding to the cellular diversity in an organ. SCARECROW (SCR), a GRAS domain-containing transcription factor controls asymmetric periclinal cell divisions in flowering plants by governing radial patterning of ground tissue in roots and cell proliferation in leaves. Though SCR homologs are present across land plant lineages, the current understanding of their role in cellular patterning and leaf development is mostly limited to flowering plants.

Physcomitrium patens response to elevated CO is flexible and determined by an interaction between sugar and nitrogen availability.

Mosses hold a unique position in plant evolution and are crucial for protecting natural, long-term carbon storage systems such as permafrost and bogs. Due to small stature, mosses grow close to the soil surface and are exposed to high levels of CO , produced by soil respiration. However, the impact of elevated CO (eCO ) levels on mosses remains underexplored.

Peptides from conserved tandem direct repeats of SHORT-LEAF regulate gametophore development in moss P. patens.

Tandem direct repeat (TDR)-containing proteins, present across all domains of life, play crucial roles in plant development and defense mechanisms. Previously, we identified that disruption of a bryophyte-specific protein family, SHORT-LEAF (SHLF), possessing the longest reported TDRs, is the cause of the shlf mutant phenotype in Physcomitrium patens. shlf exhibits reduced apical dominance, altered auxin distribution, and 2-fold shorter leaves.

Moving beyond the arabidopsis-centric view of G-protein signaling in plants.

Heterotrimeric G-protein-mediated signaling is a key mechanism to transduce a multitude of endogenous and environmental signals in diverse organisms. The scope and expectations of plant G-protein research were set by pioneering work in metazoans. Given the similarity of the core constituents, G-protein-signaling mechanisms were presumed to be universally conserved.

The plant response to high CO levels is heritable and orchestrated by DNA methylation.

Plant responses to abiotic environmental challenges are known to have lasting effects on the plant beyond the initial stress exposure. Some of these lasting effects are transgenerational, affecting the next generation. The plant response to elevated carbon dioxide (CO ) levels has been well studied.

Abscisic acid-controlled redox proteome of Arabidopsis and its regulation by heterotrimeric Gβ protein.

The plant hormone abscisic acid (ABA) plays crucial roles in regulation of stress responses and growth modulation. Heterotrimeric G-proteins are key mediators of ABA responses. Both ABA and G-proteins have also been implicated in intracellular redox regulation; however, the extent to which reversible protein oxidation manipulates ABA and/or G-protein signaling remains uncharacterized.

Effect of environmental signals on growth and development in mosses.

Plants perceive a multitude of environmental signals and stresses, and integrate their response to them in ways that culminate in modified phenotypes, optimized for plant survival. This ability of plants, known as phenotypic plasticity, is found throughout evolution, in all plant lineages. For any given environment, the specifics of the response to a particular signal may vary depending on the plants' unique physiology and ecological niche.

Evolutionarily Conserved and Non-Conserved Roles of Heterotrimeric Gα Proteins of Plants.

Heterotrimeric G-proteins modulate multiple signaling pathways in many eukaryotes. In plants, G-proteins have been characterized primarily from a few model angiosperms and a moss. Even within this small group, they seem to affect plant phenotypes differently: G-proteins are essential for survival in monocots, needed for adaptation but are nonessential in eudicots, and are required for life cycle completion and transition from the gametophytic to sporophytic phase in the moss Physcomitrium (Physcomitrella) patens.

Distribution and the evolutionary history of G-protein components in plant and algal lineages.

Heterotrimeric G-protein complexes comprising Gα-, Gβ-, and Gγ-subunits and the regulator of G-protein signaling (RGS) are conserved across most eukaryotic lineages. Signaling pathways mediated by these proteins influence overall growth, development, and physiology. In plants, this protein complex has been characterized primarily from angiosperms with the exception of spreading-leaved earth moss (Physcomitrium patens) and Chara braunii (charophytic algae).

The unique bryophyte-specific repeat-containing protein SHORT-LEAF regulates gametophore development in moss.

Convergent evolution of shoot development across plant lineages has prompted numerous comparative genetic studies. Though functional conservation of gene networks governing flowering plant shoot development has been explored in bryophyte gametophore development, the role of bryophyte-specific genes remains unknown. Previously, we have reported Tnt1 insertional mutants of moss defective in gametophore development.

Agrobacterium-mediated Tnt1 mutagenesis of moss protonemal filaments and generation of stable mutants with impaired gametophyte.

The gametophyte of moss exhibits a simple body plan, yet its growth is regulated by complex developmental phenomena similar to angiosperms. Because moss can be easily maintained under laboratory conditions, amenable for gene targeting and the availability of genome sequence, P. patens has become an attractive model system for studying evolutionary traits.

Flower development, pollen fertility and sex expression analyses of three sexual phenotypes of Coccinia grandis.

Background: Coccinia grandis is a dioecious species of Cucurbitaceae having heteromorphic sex chromosomes. The chromosome constitution of male and female plants is 22 + XY and 22 + XX respectively. Y chromosome of male sex is conspicuously large and plays a decisive role in determining maleness.