Small post-translationally modified Peptide signals in Arabidopsis

Recent biochemical, genetic and bioinformatic studies have demonstrated that peptide signaling plays a greater than anticipated role in various aspects of plant growth and development. More than a dozen secreted peptides are now recognized as important signals that mediate cell-to-cell communication. Secreted peptide signals often undergo post-translational modification and proteolytic processing, which are important for their function. Such "small post-translationally modified peptide signals" constitute one of the largest groups of peptide signals in plants. In parallel with the discovery of peptide signals, specific receptors for such peptides were identified as being membrane-localized receptor kinases, the largest family of receptor-like molecules in plants. These findings illustrate the critical roles of small peptide ligand-receptor pairs in plant growth and development. This review outlines recent research into secreted peptide signals in plants by focusing on small post-translationally modified peptides.