Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 26, 2026

Imaging Spatial Reorganization of a MAPK Signaling Pathway Using the Tobacco Transient Expression System
Published on: March 20, 2016
PAN1: a receptor-like protein that promotes polarization of an asymmetric cell division in maize
Heather N Cartwright1, John A Humphries, Laurie G Smith
1Section of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, San Diego, CA 92093-0116, USA.
Abstract:
Polarization of cell division is essential for eukaryotic development, but little is known about how this is accomplished in plants. The formation of stomatal complexes in maize involves the polarization of asymmetric subsidiary mother cell (SMC) divisions toward the adjacent guard mother cell (GMC), apparently under the influence of a GMC-derived signal. We found that the maize pan1 gene promotes the premitotic polarization of SMCs and encodes a leucine-rich repeat receptor-like protein that becomes localized in SMCs at sites of GMC contact. PAN1 has an inactive kinase domain but is required for the accumulation of a membrane-associated phosphoprotein, suggesting a function for PAN1 in signal transduction. Our findings implicate PAN1 in the transmission of an extrinsic signal that polarizes asymmetric SMC divisions toward GMCs.
Related Concept Videos
Cell Polarization by Rho Proteins
Cell Signaling in Plants
M-Cdk Drives Transition Into Mitosis
Cyclin-dependent kinases, or Cdks, work in concert with cyclins to control cell cycle transitions. M-Cdk, a complex of Cdk1 bound to M cyclin, is a well-known example of this coordinated control that drives the transition from the G2 to the M phase.
M cyclin...
The Phragmoplast
The...
Molecular Factors Affecting Cell Division
Several proteins function as internal regulators to ensure each cell cycle stage is completed faithfully before proceeding to the next. Regulator molecules may act directly or influence the activity or production of other...
Microtubule Associated Proteins (MAPs)
