Cellular differentiation in the maize leaf is disrupted by bundle sheath defective mutations

The mature maize leaf is characterised by a series of parallel veins that are surrounded by concentric rings of bundle sheath (BS) and mesophyll (M) cells. To identify genes that control cellular differentiation patterns in the leaf, we have isolated a group of mutations that specifically disrupt the differentiation of a single cell type. In maize bundle sheath defective (bsd) mutants, C4 photosynthetic development is perturbed in BS cells while M cells appear to develop normally. Two mutants, bsd1 and bsd2, have been characterised in detail. Analysis of these mutants, and the corresponding Bsd1 and Bsd2 genes is providing an insight into cellular processes regulating photosynthetic cell type differentiation in maize.