Signaling peptides at the crossroad of root endosymbioses.
Teyssendier de la Serve J, Gautrat P, Frugier F
Plant Signaling
Every clover and pea in your garden is quietly running a molecular negotiation underground, signaling which microbial partners to invite in and when — and cracking that code could one day mean growing beans and squash with almost no added fertilizer.
Plants have two remarkable partnerships they can form underground: one with bacteria that grab nitrogen straight from the air, and one with fungi that act like extended roots pulling in phosphorus. These partnerships are switched on or off by tiny protein signals the plant releases. Scientists are now mapping exactly how these signals work together, which could help us grow crops with far less chemical fertilizer.
Key Findings
Two families of signaling peptides — CEPs and CLE peptides — act as key regulators coordinating both nitrogen-fixing and phosphorus-acquiring root symbioses in plants.
These two types of root endosymbioses (nodulation and arbuscular mycorrhization) are evolutionarily related and appear to share regulatory machinery involving the same signaling peptide families.
Targeting these peptide signals represents a potential strategy for engineering plants that more efficiently acquire nitrogen and phosphorus in nutrient-poor soils, reducing dependence on synthetic fertilizers.
chevron_right Technical Summary
Plants use tiny chemical signals called peptides to manage two powerful underground partnerships — one with bacteria that pull nitrogen from the air, and one with fungi that deliver phosphorus from soil. Understanding these signals could help scientists grow more food with less fertilizer.
Abstract Preview
In the heterogeneous and fluctuating environments in which plants grow, they must efficiently acquire essential nutrients to sustain growth and development. Root endosymbioses, including dinitrogen...
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