Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 21, 2026

Chromatin Immunoprecipitation Assay for the Identification of Arabidopsis Protein-DNA Interactions In Vivo
Published on: January 14, 2016
Photoperiod regulates flower meristem development in Arabidopsis thaliana
1Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-1048, USA.
Abstract:
Photoperiod has been known to regulate flowering time in many plant species. In Arabidopsis, genes in the long day (LD) pathway detect photoperiod and promote flowering under LD. It was previously reported that clavata2 (clv2) mutants grown under short day (SD) conditions showed suppression of the flower meristem defects, namely the accumulation of stem cells and the resulting production of extra floral organs. Detailed analysis of this phenomenon presented here demonstrates that the suppression is a true photoperiodic response mediated by the inactivation of the LD pathway under SD. Inactivation of the LD pathway was sufficient to suppress the clv2 defects under LD, and activation of the LD pathway under SD conditions restored clv2 phenotypes. These results reveal a novel role of photoperiod in flower meristem development in Arabidopsis. Flower meristem defects of clv1 and clv3 mutants are also suppressed under SD, and 35S:CO enhanced the defects of clv3, indicating that the LD pathway works independently from the CLV genes. A model is proposed to explain the interactions between photoperiod and the CLV genes.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Biological Clocks and Seasonal Responses
Photoreceptors and Plant Responses to Light
Morphogenesis
Cell Signaling in Plants

