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New Insights into Plant Self-Healing Mechanisms
Plants possess remarkable self-healing abilities that allow them to repair damaged tissues, particularly evident when the stem is injured. This adaptive response is crucial for survival and plays a significant role in horticultural practices like grafting, which helps propagate fruit and vegetable species.
While previous research primarily focused on the processes that initiate cell proliferation during tissue repair, there has been a notable lack of investigation into the mechanisms that inhibit excessive cell growth. Recently, a study on Arabidopsis has shed light on an essential component of this balance.
The researchers identified At2-MMP, a proteolytic enzyme, as a key player in regulating cell proliferation necessary for the healing of severed flower stems. These findings are detailed in an article published in the journal Plant and Cell Physiology.
By conducting experiments on Arabidopsis mutants that lack the At2-MMP gene, the team observed significant differences compared to wild-type plants. Specifically, the mutants displayed uncontrolled cell proliferation at the injury site, highlighting the enzyme’s critical role in wound healing.
In the wild-type Arabidopsis flowering stems, cell proliferation was initially observed in the pith cells, located at the core of the stem, around three days after a severing event. The expression of At2-MMP transcripts was noted to rise steadily from day 0 to day 5, tapering off by day 7 as the tissue repair process concluded.
Contrastingly, the mutant plants without At2-MMP exhibited aberrant cell division, emphasizing the necessity of this enzyme in maintaining orderly repair processes. An increased expression of At2-MMP mimicked the normal healing responses noted in wild-type plants, suggesting its pivotal role in restraining excessive cell division during tissue restoration.
The study’s conclusions suggest that the At2-MMP enzyme not only supports effective tissue repair by managing cell growth but also reflects a vital evolutionary adaptation in plants, enabling them to thrive despite their immobility. This mechanism enhances their self-healing capabilities in the face of environmental injuries.
More information:
Afiifah Machfuudzoh et al, At2-MMP is required for attenuation of cell proliferation during wound healing in incised Arabidopsis inflorescence stems, Plant And Cell Physiology (2024). DOI: 10.1093/pcp/pcae103
Citation:
Elucidating the mechanism of cell division during plant self-healing (2024, September 27)
retrieved from Phys.org
Source
phys.org