The "mysterious power" in plant growth, golven10 peptide, can actually change root development and root nodule arrangement!Scientists from several countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, China and Australia, published the groundbreaking study in the journal Plant J.
The researchers found that the golven10 peptide plays a key role in the root development and nodule arrangement of alfalfa medicago truncatula. They found that 5 of the 15 GLV RGF genes were significantly upregulated during nodule organogenesis, with different responses to nitrogen deficiency and auxin treatment. In particular, at the site of nodulation initiation, the expression of mtglv9 and mtglv10 genes depends on the nodule inception transcription factor. By overexpressing these five nodulation-induced GLV genes in the hairy roots of alfalfa and applying their synthetic peptide analogues, the number of nodulations was successfully reduced by 25-50%.
Remarkably, the Golven10 peptide alters the position of the first lateral root and nodules on the taproot axis, an observation known as "nodulation tropism";This reduces the length of the organ-forming zone on the root side. Histological biopsy of roots treated with synthetic golven10 peptide showed an increase in the number of cells within the cell layer of the root cortex, but no corresponding increase in cell length, resulting in root lengthening and possible spatiotemporal delay in the introduction of organ formation. At the transcriptional level, the golven10 peptide inhibits the expression of microtubule-related genes and acts by altering the expression of a large number of auxin-responsive genes.
This discovery advances our understanding of the molecular mechanisms by which Golven peptides regulate root morphology, nodulation, and interaction with key transcriptional pathways. This study provides important clues for revealing the mechanism of this "mysterious force" in plant growth, and is expected to provide new ideas and methods for future plant growth regulation and agricultural production.
roy s, torres-jerez i, zhang s, liu w, schiessl k, jain d, boschiero c, lee hk, krom n, zhao px, murray jd, oldroyd ged, scheible wr, udvardi m. the peptide golven10 alters root development and noduletaxis in medicago truncatula. plant j. 2024 feb 15. doi: 10.1111/tpj.16626 . epub ahead of print. pmid: 38361340.