Regulation of Plant Development

A unique feature of plants is the fact that environmental factors play a crucial role in their development. In this course, molecular, cell biological and physiological aspects of plant developmental processes will be discussed. We will cover several conceptual frameworks of development of plant cell types and organs. The focus will be on how plant endogenous signals are directing plant organ development, how these signalling networks can be modified by environmental factors, and how such networks evolved. Different examples in the lectures, tutorials and literature discussions will be used to illustrate how plants can adapt to their environment at the cellular, tissue and whole plant level by integrating environmental cues into developmental processes.

After successful completion of this course students are expected to be able:

• To summarize and compare plant developmental processes, including embryogenesis, meristem initiation and maintenance, root, shoot and leaf development, and flower development;
• To understand the regulation of plant development at physiological, cellular and molecular level;
• To explain how plant endogenous signals and abiotic and biotic environmental signals are perceived and integrated into the initiation, proceeding and control of developmental processes, and argue how this regulation evolved;
• To be able to recognize basic communalities in underlying plant developmental concepts and mechanisms, and to use these to argue on their involvement in other biological processes.
• To digest research articles in this research field and identify weak and strong points.

Assumed Knowledge:
EZO22306 Key concepts in Developmental Biology, GEN20806 Plant Biotechnology, MOB20306 Gene Technology, or equivalent.