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Researchers from the University of Freiburg have identified the HAN molecule as an important regulator that controls plant growth in conjunction with WOX5. Understanding this mechanism is relevant for breeding more resilient or higher-yielding crops.

Plants form new leaves, flowers and roots at the tips of shoots and roots, in specific growth regions known as meristems. These meristems contain stem cells that divide as needed and form new cells that develop into specialized tissue.

Using the example of plant roots, the researchers have now been able to decipher which regulatory mechanisms ensure that growth in the meristem occurs in a controlled manner. The results have been published in the journal Nature Plants.

Stem cells are dependent on signals from other cells

The fact that stem cells can continuously divide and form progenitor cells for specialized tissues is not a matter of course: signals from other cells are necessary to control the properties of stem cells. This dependence on signaling processes is also a protective mechanism. If stem cells were able to multiply uncontrollably, this would lead to uncontrolled growth, as in the case of cancer.

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