Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Photoreceptors and Plant Responses to Light

Photoreceptors and Plant Responses to Light

Light plays a significant role in regulating the growth and development of plants. In addition to providing energy for photosynthesis, light provides other important cues to regulate a range of developmental and physiological responses in plants.

Light Acquisition

Light Acquisition

In order to produce glucose, plants need to capture sufficient light energy. Many modern plants have evolved leaves specialized for light acquisition. Leaves can be only millimeters in width or tens of meters wide, depending on the environment. Due to competition for sunlight, evolution has driven the evolution of increasingly larger leaves and taller plants, to avoid shading by their neighbors with contaminant elaboration of root architecture and mechanisms to transport water and nutrients.

Cell Signaling in Plants

Cell Signaling in Plants

Plant cells communicate to coordinate their cycle of growth, flowering and fruiting, and activities in roots, shoots, and leaves in response to the changing environmental conditions. Plant signaling is distinct from animal signaling. Plants primarily utilize enzyme-linked receptors, whereas the largest class of cell-surface receptors in animals are G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs). Unlike animals, receptor tyrosine kinases are rare in plants. Instead, plants have a diverse class of...

Water and Mineral Acquisition

Water and Mineral Acquisition

Specialized tissues in plant roots have evolved to capture water, minerals, and some ions from the soil. Roots exhibit a variety of branching patterns that facilitate this process. The outermost root cells have specialized structures called root hairs that increase the root surface, thus increasing soil contact. Water can passively cross into roots, as the concentration of water in the soil is higher than that of the root tissue. Minerals, in contrast, are actively transported into root cells.

Responses to Gravity and Touch

Responses to Gravity and Touch

Gravitropism: Plant Responses to Gravity

Key Elements for Plant Nutrition

Key Elements for Plant Nutrition

Like all living organisms, plants require organic and inorganic nutrients to survive, reproduce, grow and maintain homeostasis. To identify nutrients that are essential for plant functioning, researchers have leveraged a technique called hydroponics. In hydroponic culture systems, plants are grown—without soil—in water-based solutions containing nutrients. At least 17 nutrients have been identified as essential elements required by plants. Plants acquire these elements from the atmosphere, the...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Identification of a plasma membrane complex that interacts with phyB to regulate ROS production.

Plant physiology·2026

Same author

The cost of self-promotion: ecological and demographic implications of the mentor effect in natural plant populations.

The New phytologist·2022

Same author

Phytochrome B regulates reactive oxygen signaling during abiotic and biotic stress in plants.

The New phytologist·2022

Same author

Climate driven disruption of transitional alpine bumble bee communities.

Global change biology·2022

Same author

Phytochrome B Is Required for Systemic Stomatal Responses and Reactive Oxygen Species Signaling during Light Stress.

Plant physiology·2020

Same author

Sexual and natural selection on pollen morphology in Taraxacum.

American journal of botany·2020

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 20, 2026

Light Sheet Fluorescence Microscopy of Plant Roots Growing on the Surface of a Gel

Light Sheet Fluorescence Microscopy of Plant Roots Growing on the Surface of a Gel

Published on: January 18, 2017

Light-sensing in roots.

Candace Galen¹, Jessica J Rabenold, Emmanuel Liscum

¹Division of Biological Sciences; University of Missouri-Columbia; Columbia, Missouri USA.

Plant Signaling & Behavior

|August 26, 2009

Summary

Plant roots sense light, influencing growth and drought tolerance. Understanding soil light cues is crucial for plant adaptation in natural environments, using Arabidopsis thaliana as a model.

Area of Science:

Plant biology
Environmental science
Genetics

Background:

Light gradients in soil are understudied factors in plant environmental responses.
Plant roots possess photoreceptors potentially sensing light through soil or vascular tissues.
Phototropin-1 photoreceptor links root growth efficiency and drought tolerance in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Purpose of the Study:

Investigate the ecological relevance of light-mediated root growth.
Address challenges in distinguishing root vs. shoot light-sensing functions due to photoreceptor pleiotropy.
Establish Arabidopsis thaliana blue-light root sensing as a model system for adaptation studies.

Main Methods:

Calibrate blue light gradients within soils of diverse Arabidopsis thaliana habitats.

Keywords:

Arabidopsis thaliana drought-tolerance photoreceptors phototropin roots

More Related Videos

RGB and Spectral Root Imaging for Plant Phenotyping and Physiological Research: Experimental Setup and Imaging Protocols

RGB and Spectral Root Imaging for Plant Phenotyping and Physiological Research: Experimental Setup and Imaging Protocols

Published on: August 8, 2017

Time-lapse Fluorescence Imaging of Arabidopsis Root Growth with Rapid Manipulation of The Root Environment Using The RootChip

Time-lapse Fluorescence Imaging of Arabidopsis Root Growth with Rapid Manipulation of The Root Environment Using The RootChip

Published on: July 7, 2012

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 20, 2026

Light Sheet Fluorescence Microscopy of Plant Roots Growing on the Surface of a Gel

Light Sheet Fluorescence Microscopy of Plant Roots Growing on the Surface of a Gel

Published on: January 18, 2017

RGB and Spectral Root Imaging for Plant Phenotyping and Physiological Research: Experimental Setup and Imaging Protocols

RGB and Spectral Root Imaging for Plant Phenotyping and Physiological Research: Experimental Setup and Imaging Protocols

Published on: August 8, 2017

Time-lapse Fluorescence Imaging of Arabidopsis Root Growth with Rapid Manipulation of The Root Environment Using The RootChip

Time-lapse Fluorescence Imaging of Arabidopsis Root Growth with Rapid Manipulation of The Root Environment Using The RootChip

Published on: July 7, 2012

Compare the fitness of phot1 mutant and wild-type plants.

Grow plants in the presence and absence of soil light cues.

Main Results:

Demonstrated linkages between phototropin-1 production, root growth efficiency, and drought tolerance.
Highlighted the poor understanding of light cue availability in natural soil environments.
Identified challenges in attributing specific functions to root versus shoot photoreceptor mechanisms.

Conclusions:

Root plasticity in response to light signals may shape the ecological niche of Arabidopsis thaliana.
Further research is needed to understand the ecological significance of light-mediated root plasticity.
Blue-light sensing in Arabidopsis thaliana roots offers a promising model for studying plant adaptation to light cues.