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Updated: May 31, 2026

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Lateral Root Inducible System in Arabidopsis and Maize
Published on: January 14, 2016
Arabidopsis Lateral Root Development 3 is essential for early phloem development and function, and hence for normal
Paul Ingram1, Jan Dettmer, Yrjo Helariutta
1Department of Molecular Genetics and Cell Biology, The University of Chicago, 5812 S. Ellis Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
The Plant Journal : for Cell and Molecular Biology
|July 14, 2011
Summary
The Lateral Root Development 3 (LRD3) gene is crucial for balancing root growth by regulating phloem development. Its absence impairs primary root growth, highlighting LRD3
Area of Science:
- Plant Biology
- Developmental Biology
- Genetics
Background:
- Maintaining root growth balance is essential for plant development.
- Phloem transport is vital for delivering nutrients and signaling molecules throughout the plant.
- Early phloem development is critical for establishing root system architecture.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify genes regulating the balance between primary and lateral root growth.
- To elucidate the function of the newly identified Lateral Root Development 3 (LRD3) gene.
- To understand the role of phloem development in root system architecture.
Main Methods:
- Mutant screening and characterization (lrd3 mutant).
- Gene expression analysis (LRD3 expression in phloem companion cells).
- Phenotypic analysis of root growth, phloem morphology, and transport.
- Hormonal treatment (auxin) to assess recovery mechanisms.
Main Results:
- The lrd3 mutant exhibits decreased primary root growth and increased lateral root growth.
- LRD3 encodes a LIM-domain protein essential for early phloem development and function.
- Impaired phloem development in lrd3 mutants leads to limited nutrient delivery to the primary root tip.
- Spontaneous recovery of phloem morphology and function is observed in lrd3 mutants.
- Auxin treatment rescues phloem development and function in lrd3 mutants.
- LRD3 is the only known gene specifically affecting early phloem development.
Conclusions:
- LRD3 plays a critical role in early phloem development, impacting root growth balance.
- Phloem-mediated resource allocation is a key factor in shaping root system architecture.
- Auxin is essential for early phloem development and function.
- The study provides novel insights into the regulation of plant root system architecture through phloem development.
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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.

