KLUH/CYP78A5 promotes organ growth without affecting the size of the early primordium

Mobile signals play a key role in controlling the growth of organisms. In Arabidopsis, the cytochrome P450 CYP78A5/KLUH (KLU) non-cell autonomously stimulates cell proliferation in developing organs. In a recent study, we determined the range of KLU action, using a widely applicable system to generate predictable chimaeric plants. We showed that KLU acts not only within individual floral organs or flowers, but that its overall activity level is integrated across an inflorescence to determine organ size. Here, we address the question at which stage of petal development KLU acts to promote growth. We demonstrate that the size of the very young petal primordium in klu mutants is not altered, supporting the conclusion that KLU acts during later stages of organ outgrowth and a correspondingly longer range of the presumed KLU-dependent growth signal.