Information processing without brains--the power of intercellular regulators in plants.
Journal Article (Review;Journal Article)
Plants exhibit different developmental strategies than animals; these are characterized by a tight linkage between environmental conditions and development. As plants have neither specialized sensory organs nor a nervous system, intercellular regulators are essential for their development. Recently, major advances have been made in understanding how intercellular regulation is achieved in plants on a molecular level. Plants use a variety of molecules for intercellular regulation: hormones are used as systemic signals that are interpreted at the individual-cell level; receptor peptide-ligand systems regulate local homeostasis; moving transcriptional regulators act in a switch-like manner over small and large distances. Together, these mechanisms coherently coordinate developmental decisions with resource allocation and growth.
Full Text
Duke Authors
Cited Authors
- Busch, W; Benfey, PN
Published Date
- April 2010
Published In
Volume / Issue
- 137 / 8
Start / End Page
- 1215 - 1226
PubMed ID
- 20332147
Pubmed Central ID
- PMC2847462
Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)
- 1477-9129
International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
- 0950-1991
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
- 10.1242/dev.034868
Language
- eng