Wood formation in in vitro propagated walnut shoots in relation with root formation and development

in Acta Botanica Gallica : Bulletin de la Société Botanique de France (2004), 151(1), 45-53

Lignification and xylem cell multiplication for wood formation were examined in in vitro propagated walnut shoot cuttings after transfer on an auxin-containing rooting medium for one week and subsequently ... [more ▼]

Lignification and xylem cell multiplication for wood formation were examined in in vitro propagated walnut shoot cuttings after transfer on an auxin-containing rooting medium for one week and subsequently during root development in vermiculite in the absence of growth regulators. Lignification in the shoot stems started immediately after the exogenous auxin treatment which implied changes in peroxidase activity and in free IAA levels. Sustained lignification required the completion of the following rooting phases. The lignin was exclusively located in xylem cells, the number of which increased with the number of developing roots. The mutual interactions between the aerial parts of the plants and their roots are discussed. [less ▲]

Changing concepts in plant hormone action

in In Vitro Cellular & Developmental Biology-Plant (2003), 39(2, MAR-APR), 85-106

A plant hormone is not, in the classic animal sense, a chemical synthesized in one organ, transported to a second organ to exert a chemical action to control a physiological event. Any phytohormone can be ... [more ▼]

A plant hormone is not, in the classic animal sense, a chemical synthesized in one organ, transported to a second organ to exert a chemical action to control a physiological event. Any phytohormone can be synthesized everywhere and can influence different growth and development processes at different places. The concept of physiological activity under hormonal control cannot be dissociated from changes in concentrations at the site of action, from spatial differences and changes in the tissue's sensitivity to the compound, from its transport and its metabolism, from balances and interactions with the other phytohormones, or in their metabolic relationships, and in their signaling pathways as well. Secondary messengers are also involved. Hormonal involvement in physiological processes can appear through several distinct manifestations (as environmental sensors, homeostatic regulators and spatio-temporal synchronizers, resource allocators, biotime adjusters, etc.), dependent on or integrated with the primary biochemical pathways. The time has also passed for the hypothesized 'specific' developmental hormones, rhizocaline, caulocaline, and florigen: root, stem, and flower formation result from a sequential control of specific events at the right places through a coordinated control by electrical signals, the known phytohormones and nonspecific molecules of primary and secondary metabolism, and involve both cytoplasmic and apoplastic compartments. These contemporary views are examined in this review. [less ▲]

Loss of plant organogenic totipotency in the course of in vitro neoplastic progression

in In Vitro Cellular & Developmental Biology-Plant (2000), 36(3), 171-181

The aptitude for organogenesis from normal hormone-dependent cultures very commonly decreases as the tissues are serially subcultured. The reasons for the loss of regenerative ability may vary under ... [more ▼]

The aptitude for organogenesis from normal hormone-dependent cultures very commonly decreases as the tissues are serially subcultured. The reasons for the loss of regenerative ability may vary under different circumstances: genetic variation in the cell population, epigenetic changes, disappearance of an organogenesis-promoting substance, etc. The same reasons may be evoked for the progressive and eventually irreversible loss of organogenic totipotency in the course of neoplastic progressions from hormone-independent tumors and hyperhydric teratomas to cancers. As in animal cells, plant cells at the end of a neoplastic progression have probably undergone several independent genetic accidents with cumulative effects. They indeed are characterized by atypical biochemical cycles from which they are apparently unable to escape. The metabolic changes are probably not the primary defects that cause cancer, rather they may allow the cells to survive. How these changes, namely an oxidative stress, affect organogenesis is not known. The literature focuses on somatic mutations and epigenetic changes that cause aberrant regulation of cell cycle genes and their machinery. [less ▲]