Lights, location, action: shade avoidance signalling over spatial scales

Plants growing in dense vegetation need to flexibly position their photosynthetic organs to ensure optimal light capture in a competitive environment. They do so through a suite of developmental responses referred to as the shade avoidance syndrome. Below ground, root development is also adjusted in response to above-ground neighbour proximity. Canopies are dynamic and complex environments with heterogeneous light cues in the far-red, red, blue, and UV spectrum, which can be perceived by photoreceptors in spatially separated plant tissues. Molecular regulation of plant architecture adjustment via PHYTOCHROME-INTERACTING FACTOR transcription factors and growth-related hormones such as auxin, gibberellic acid, brassinosteroids, and abscisic acid were historically studied without much attention to spatial or tissue-specific context. Recent developments and technologies have, however, sparked strong interest in spatially explicit understanding of shade avoidance regulation. Other environmental factors such as temperature and nutrient availability interact with the molecular shade avoidance regulation network, often depending on the spatial location of the signals, and the responding organs. Here, we review recent advances in how plants respond to heterogeneous light cues and integrate these with other environmental signals.