Skip to main content

Developmental Analysis of Arabidopsis Root Meristem

  • Protocol
  • First Online:
Root Development

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 1761))

Abstract

Plant postembryonic development takes place in region called meristems that represent a reserve of undifferentiated cells. In the root meristem of Arabidopsis thaliana, all tissues originate from a stem-cell niche. Stem-cell daughters undergo a finite number of cell divisions until they reach the transition zone where divisions cease and cells start to differentiate. For meristem maintenance, and therefore continuous root growth, the rate of cell differentiation must equal the rate of generation of new cells. How this balance is achieved is a central question in plant biology. In this chapter we described protocols to help the operator in approaching developmental studies on the Arabidopsis root meristem.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Protocol
USD 49.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 89.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 119.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Scheres B (2007) Stem-cell niches: nursery rhymes across kingdoms. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol 8:345–354

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. van den Berg C, Willemsen V, Hendriks G et al (1997) Short-range control of cell differentiation in the Arabidopsis root meristem. Nature 390:287–289

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Rougier M (1981) Secretory activity of the root cap. In: Tanner W, Loewus FA (eds) Plant carbohydrates II. PLANT, vol 13B. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg, pp 542–574

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  4. Sievers A, Hensel W (1991) Root cap. In: Waisel Y, Eshel A, Kafkfi U (eds) Plant roots: the hidden half. Marcel Dekker, New York, pp 53–74

    Google Scholar 

  5. Dolan L, Janmaat K, Willemsen V et al (1993) Cellular organisation of the Arabidopsis thaliana root. Development 119:71–84

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Berger F, Hung CY, Dolan L et al (1998) Control of cell division in the root epidermis of Arabidopsis thaliana. Dev Biol 194:235–245

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Galway ME, Masucci JD, Lloyd AM et al (1994) The TTG gene is required to specify epidermal cell fate and cell patterning in the Arabidopsis root. Dev Biol 166:740–754

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Helariutta Y, Fukaki H, Wysocka-Diller J et al (2000) The SHORT-ROOT gene controls radial patterning of the Arabidopsis root through radial signaling. Cell 101:505–517

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Leyser O, Day D (2005) Mechanism in plant development. Blackwell Publishing, Malden, USA

    Google Scholar 

  10. De Smet I, Vanneste S, Inzè D et al (2006) Lateral root initiation or the birth of a new meristem. Plant Mol Biol 60:871–887

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Benfey PN, Scheres B (2000) Root development. Curr Biol 10:R813–R815

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Di Mambro R, De Ruvo M, Pacifici E, Salvi E, Sozzani R, Benfey PN, Busch W, Novak O, Ljung K, Di Paola L, Marée AFM, Costantino P, Grieneisen VA, Sabatini S (2017) Auxin minimum triggers the developmental switch from cell division to cell differentiation in the root. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 114(36):E7641–E7649

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  13. Dello Ioio R, Linhares FS, Scacchi E et al (2007) Cytokinins determine Arabidopsis root-meristem size by controlling cell differentiation. Curr Biol 17:678–682

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Beemster GTS, Baskin TI (1998) Analysis of cell division and elongation underlying the developmental acceleration of root growth in Arabidopsis thaliana. Plant Physiol 116:1515–1526

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  15. Scheres B, Wolkenfelt H, Willemsen V et al (1994) Embryonic origin of the Arabidopsis primary root and root meristem initials. Development 120:2475–2487

    Google Scholar 

  16. Moubayidin L, Perilli S, Dello Ioio R et al (2010) The rate of cell differentiation controls the Arabidopsis root meristem growth phase. Curr Biol 20:1138–1143

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Dello Ioio R, Nakamura K, Moubayidin L et al (2008) A genetic framework for the control of cell division and differentiation in the root meristem. Science 322:1380–1384

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Mayer U, Torres Ruis R, Berleth T et al (1991) Mutations affecting body organization in the Arabidopsis embryo. Nature 353:402–407

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. French AP, Wilson MH, Kenobi K et al (2012) Identifying biological landmarks using a novel cell measuring image analysis tool: cell-o-tape. Plant Methods 8:7

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  20. Musielak TJ, Schenkel L, Kolb M, Henschen A, Bayer M (2015) A simple and versatile cell wall staining protocol to study plant reproduction. Plant Reproduction 28(3-4):161–169

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgment

The authors would like to thank Raffaele Dello Ioio, Rosangela Sozzani, Elena Pacifici, Laura Polverari, Emanuela Pierdonati, Elena Salvi, and Serena Perilli for helpful comment. This work was supported by The European Research Council.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sabrina Sabatini .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2018 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC

About this protocol

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this protocol

Di Mambro, R., Sabatini, S. (2018). Developmental Analysis of Arabidopsis Root Meristem. In: Ristova, D., Barbez, E. (eds) Root Development. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 1761. Humana Press, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-7747-5_3

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-7747-5_3

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Humana Press, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4939-7746-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4939-7747-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Protocols

Publish with us

Policies and ethics