Abstract:
Plant aerial organs are periodically initiated at the shoot apex at precise spatial positions, generating patterns called phyllotaxis. Inhibitory fields produced by depletion of the hormone auxin around organs are central regulators of the dynamics of phyllotaxis, making it a system of choice to address how robust developmental patterns emerge from lateral inhibitions in space and time. We have uncovered several hormone-regulated mechanisms that converge on the control of the timing of organ initiation in the shoot apex. We will present these mechanisms and discuss the effect of the timing of organogenesis on the building a robust plant architecture.
