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Updated: Jun 23, 2026
06:46
Confocal Live Imaging of Shoot Apical Meristems from Different Plant Species
Published on: March 29, 2019
Microdissection of shoot meristem functional domains
Lionel Brooks1, Josh Strable, Xiaolan Zhang
1Department of Plant Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA.
Plos Genetics
|May 9, 2009
Summary
Researchers identified novel maize genes crucial for leaf development by analyzing gene activity in the shoot apical meristem (SAM). This study provides new insights into SAM function and maize shoot development.
Area of Science:
- Plant Biology
- Developmental Biology
- Genetics
Background:
- The shoot apical meristem (SAM) is essential for plant growth, maintaining stem cells and initiating lateral organs like leaves.
- Understanding gene expression differences between the SAM proper and leaf initiation zones is key to deciphering leaf development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify novel maize genes involved in leaf development by comparing transcriptional profiles of different SAM domains.
- To gain new insights into SAM function and provide a platform for reverse genetic analyses in maize.
Main Methods:
- Utilized laser microdissection-microarray technology to compare gene expression in SAM domains.
- Performed in situ hybridization to confirm gene expression patterns.
- Conducted reverse genetic analyses on a specific D4-cyclin gene (asceapen1).
Main Results:
- Identified 962 differentially expressed maize genes between the SAM proper and initiating leaf domains.
- Found genes related to cell division, cell wall biosynthesis, and RNA binding upregulated in initiating leaves.
- Discovered genes involved in protein fate and DNA repair were more abundant in the SAM proper.
- Confirmed expression patterns for six uncharacterized genes and implicated auxin transport in leaf initiation.
- Revealed novel leaf phenotypes and expanded D4-CYCLIN function through analysis of asceapen1.
Conclusions:
- Generated a unique SAM domain-specific gene expression database for maize.
- Provided new insights into the molecular mechanisms of maize leaf initiation and shoot development.
- Highlighted the utility of the generated database for future reverse genetic studies in maize.
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