Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 21, 2026
09:31
Laser-assisted Microdissection (LAM) as a Tool for Transcriptional Profiling of Individual Cell Types
Published on: May 10, 2016
A terminator of floral stem cells
1State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Genes & Development
|August 5, 2009
Summary
Normal flower development needs stem cell termination. AGAMOUS (AG) represses WUSCHEL (WUS) via KNUCKLES (KNU), a newly found floral regulator, clarifying floral determinacy.
Area of Science:
- Plant biology
- Developmental biology
- Genetics
Background:
- Flower development relies on floral meristem stem cell termination.
- The AGAMOUS (AG) gene is crucial for this process, repressing WUSCHEL (WUS) expression.
- The precise mechanism of AG-mediated WUS repression remained unclear.
Discussion:
- Sun and colleagues identify KNUCKLES (KNU) as a direct target of AG.
- KNU functions as a transcriptional repressor of WUS.
- This discovery provides a critical link in understanding floral meristem determinacy.
Key Insights:
- AG directly targets and regulates KNUCKLES (KNU).
- KNUCKLES (KNU) acts as a repressor of WUSCHEL (WUS).
- This regulatory pathway is essential for terminating stem cell activity in the floral meristem.
Outlook:
- Further research can explore KNU's role in other developmental processes.
- Investigating upstream regulators of AG and downstream targets of KNU.
- Potential applications in crop improvement by modulating floral determinacy.
Related Concept Videos
02:19Morphogenesis
Plant morphogenesis—the development of a plant’s form and structure—involves several overlapping developmental processes, including growth and cell differentiation. Precursor cells differentiate into specific cell types, which are organized into the tissues and organ systems that make up the functional plant.
01:10Zygotic Development And Stem Cell Formation
The development of all multicellular organisms starts with the fusion of haploid cells called sperm and egg to form a diploid zygote. A zygote is a totipotent cell that can develop into a complete organism. The zygote undergoes cell division or cleavage to form an 8-cell mass. Until this stage, the cells are spherical, loosely attached, and remain totipotent. Totipotent cells are capable of developing both the embryonic and the extraembryonic tissues. However, as they continue to divide, they...
01:06Multipotency and Niche of Bulge Stem Cell
A hair follicle or HF is a small part of the skin that produces the hair shaft. Paul Gerson Unna was the first to observe a bulge in the human hair follicle's outer root sheath (ORS). The bulge is present between the sebaceous gland and the arrector pili muscle and is the niche for hair follicle stem cells (HFSCs). The bulge is also a niche for melanocyte stem cells, and their loss results in graying of hair. The HFSCs express Sox9 and Lhx2, which help them maintain stemness and prevent...
00:58Embryonic Stem Cells
Embryonic stem (ES) cells are undifferentiated pluripotent cells, meaning they can produce any cell type in the body. This gives them tremendous potential in science and medicine since they can generate specific cell types for use in research or to replace body cells lost due to damage or disease.
00:57Embryonic Stem Cells
Embryonic stem (ES) cells were first discovered in mice in 1981 by Martin Evans. In 1998, James Thomson identified a method to isolate embryonic stem cells from humans. Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) are obtained from 3-5 day old embryos that remain unused after an in vitro fertilization procedure.
ES cells are grown in a culture medium where they can divide indefinitely, creating ES cell lines. Under certain conditions, ES cells can differentiate, either spontaneously into a variety of...
ES cells are grown in a culture medium where they can divide indefinitely, creating ES cell lines. Under certain conditions, ES cells can differentiate, either spontaneously into a variety of...
01:17Stem Cell Culture
Stem cell research aims to find ways to use stem cells to regenerate and repair cellular damage. Over time, most adult cells undergo the wear and tear of aging and lose their ability to divide and repair themselves. Stem cells do not display a particular morphology or function. Adult stem cells, which exist as a small subset of cells in most tissues, keep dividing and can differentiate into a number of specialized cells generally formed by that tissue. These cells enable the body to renew and...