Relationship between Root Hair Formation and Primary Root Length in Arabidopsis thaliana Rapid Communication

Tominaga -Wada, Wada
2017 unpublished
Plant roots facilitate the collection of water and nutrients that are essential for growth and survival. Differences in root architecture have been linked to the survival of plants under harsh environmental conditions. Root hairs are outgrowths on root epidermal cells. Owing to their large surface area, root hairs efficiently absorb water and nutrients needed for the plant. In Arabidopsis thaliana roots, epidermal cells differentiate into two types of cells, root hair cells and non-hair cells
more » ... ,2]. Root hair formation is controlled by root hair formation related transcription factors, including CAPRICE (CPC), WEREWOLF (WER), GLABRA2 (GL2), and TRANSPARENT TESTA GLABRA1 (TTG1), in Arabidopsis [3]. The cpc-1 Abstract Roots are important organs in all vascular plants. They anchor the plant, and absorb water and nutrients from the soil. During the growth of the plant, both primary root elongation and root hair formation occur. In the present study, we aimed to clarify the effects of root hair formation on primary root elongation. We measured primary root length in several mutant plants with different number of root hairs. The mutants with many root hairs showed similar or somewhat inhibited growth of the primary roots as compared with that of the wild-type plants. However, the mutant with few root hairs showed significantly enhanced primary root growth as compared with that in the wild type plants. Our results suggest that root hair formation might inhibit primary root growth. As the number of root hairs decreases, the growth of primary root might increase.
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