Prof. José M. Alonso: "From Ethylene Signaling to Auxin Biosynthesis"

Professor José M. Alonso
Department of Genetics, North Carolina State University

From Ethylene Signaling to Auxin Biosynthesis

Survival of plants largely depends on their ability to coordinate internal programs, such as growth and development, with the external conditions of the ever-changing environment. Central to this integration are plant hormones that act as executors of both internally and externally generated signals. It is remarkable that a limited set of plant hormones is capable of triggering a large number of tissue-specific developmental stage-dependent changes in response to particular environmental conditions. Evidently, interactions between different hormones (or hormones and other signaling pathways) are critical for achieving this wide diversity of plant responses. Our recent studies shed light on a crucial role of auxin biosynthesis in modulating several ethylene responses in Arabidopsis. Taking advantage of the strict relationship between ethylene and auxin and using a combination of genetic, cellular, and molecular approaches, several auxin biosynthetic genes have been discovered. Among the genes identified are WEI8/TAA1 and TARs, a new family of auxin biosynthetic genes. Further characterization of these and other genes recently identified in the lab will provide a better understanding of the molecular network of ethylene-auxin interactions and their role in the integration of endogenous and exogenous signals.