Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 19, 2026

Robotic Sensing and Stimuli Provision for Guided Plant Growth
Published on: July 1, 2019
Photoperiodic control of flowering: not only by coincidence
1Department of Biochemistry, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA.
Abstract:
The timing of floral transition has a direct impact on reproductive success. One of the most important environmental factors that affect the transition is the change in day length (photoperiod). Classical experiments imply that plants monitor photoperiods in the leaf, and transmit that information coded within an elusive signal dubbed florigen to the apex to reprogram development. Recent advances in Arabidopsis research indicate that the core of the day-length measurement mechanism lies in the circadian regulation of CONSTANS (CO) expression and the subsequent photoperiodic induction of the expression of FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT) gene, which might encode a major component of florigen. In this review, we introduce current perspectives on how, when and where the floral signal is generated.
Related Concept Videos
Biological Clocks and Seasonal Responses
Circadian Rhythms and Gene Regulation
Photoreceptors and Plant Responses to Light
Morphogenesis
Combinatorial Gene Control
The expression of more than 30,000 genes is controlled by approximately 2000-3000 transcription factors. This is possible because a single transcription factor can recognize more than one regulatory sequence. The specificity in gene...
The Antenna Complex
