Abstract Detail

Genetics Section

Verna, Carla [1], Sawchuk, Megan G. [1], Linh, Nguyen Manh [1], Scarpella, Enrico [1].

Control of vein network formation by auxin transport.

In most multicellular organisms, signals and nutrients are transported by tissue networks such as the vein networks of plant leaves or vertebrate embryos. How well these tissue networks perform their transport function depends on features such as the number of their components and the components’ connectedness. However, what controls these features is largely unknown, partly because it is difficult to quantify the effects of genes on tissue network features. We address this problem for the vein networks of plant leaves by introducing measures of vein network features; by combining such measures with molecular genetic analysis; and by applying this combination of approaches to leaves of Arabidopsis thaliana that lack function of, overexpress or misexpress combinations of PIN-FORMED (PIN) genes, which encode transporters of the plant signal auxin and are known to control vein position. We find that the number of veins in a network and their connectedness depend on two, interacting pathways of auxin transport—a cell-to-cell pathway and a within-cell pathway—and we assign separate or overlapping functions in vein formation and connection to different auxin transporters in these two pathways. Our results suggest that changes in PIN function may underlie the formation of vein networks.

1 - University of Alberta, Department of Biological Sciences, Edmonton, AB, Canada

Keywords:
Auxin transport
Vein formation
PINs
Arabidopsis.

Presentation Type: Poster:Posters for Sections
Session: P
Location: Hall D/The Shaw Conference Centre
Date: Monday, July 27th, 2015
Time: 5:30 PM
Number: PGN007
Abstract ID:362
Candidate for Awards:Genetics Section Poster Award