Plant hormones

and
Signal transduction
 Overview

• Define “hormone” as a functional compound.

What is the function and importance of
hormones?
• Know the major plant hormones
• Understand real-world application of
hormones
• Importance of hormones for tissue culture:
introduction
 What is a hormone?
• Biochemical which regulates growth based on
biological and environmental influences
• Synonyms: Plant hormones, plant growth
regulators (PGRs), phytohormones
• Regulate growth and development
• Mobile throughout plant
• Environment and stress responsive
 Major plant hormones

• Auxin – Greek: auxein; to grow or increase

• Cytokinin – cytokinesis (cell division)
• Abscisic acid – abscission
• Jasmonic acid – found in jasmine oil
• Gibberellic acid – pathogen Gibberella
• Ethylene – chemical brother to ethanol
• Brassinosteroids – derived from Brassica spp.
 General hormone biochemistry
• Present in all cells at various levels
• Classes of hormones work in signal cascades
– Hormone-receptor interactions
– Respond to a host of factors and biological needs
• Abiotic
– Water stress
– Light
– Nutrient deficiency
• Biotic
– Growth
– Development
– Herbivore stress
A paradigm signal transduction pathway. Signals from the outside of cells can be perceived
by receptors or other proteins present at or near the plasma membrane. Once activated,
these receptors can transmit signaling information (arrows) to the interior of the cell. Many
signal transduction pathways converge on the stimulation of gene expression within the
nucleus which results in the production of new proteins in the cytoplasm that can affect
specific biological responses.
 Hormone biosynthesis
Made from four biosynthetic pathways:
– Terpenoids
• AMP + IPP (cytokinins)
• Carotenoid breakdown (abscisic acid)
• Diterpene (gibberellic acid)
• Triterpene (brassinosteroids)
– Fatty acids (jasmonic acid)
– Tryptophan (auxins)
– Methionine (ethylene)
EGG database:
tp://www.genome.jp/kegg/
2, 4-dichlorophenoxyacetic Acid
http://www.rikenresearch.r
iken.jp/eng/research/6121
 Auxin Signaling
When auxin acts to promote cell division and growth, it does so mainly by increasing the
expression of genes that encode required proteins for these processes. Thus, researchers
have sought to understand the steps between auxin perception and the final gene
expression regulation. We now know that auxin signaling involves ubiquitin-mediated
protein turnover as way to control transcription of genes that allow the plant to effect a
response to auxin. Molecular studies revealed the first players in auxin signaling as a group
of genes encoding the IAA/AUX proteins whose expression is rapidly upregulated in
response to auxin within minutes. Most of the IAA/ AUX proteins are nuclear-localized and
have a very short half-life. They can form heterodimers with the auxin response factor
transcriptional regulators (ARFs), and then bind to a 6bp (6-base-pair) auxin-responsive
element (ARE) present in the promoters of auxin regulated genes. Further studies revealed
that ARF:ARF homodimers were responsible for activation of gene expression in response
to auxin, while ARF:AUX/IAA heterodimers blocked transcriptional activation (Quint and
Gray 2006).
Genetic mutants that failed to respond to auxin in seedling growth assays identified
genes that are required for some of the plant’s responses to auxin. These genes, which
include the axr1 and tir1 genes, encode proteins that function in the ubiquitin-mediated
protein turnover pathway in eukaryotes. The proteasome is a large, macromolecular
structure that functions to degrade proteins within the cell.
It has been shown that the F-box protein encoded by TIR1
becomes physically associated with auxin, and thus may function
as an auxin receptor. After binding to auxin, TIR1 may stimulate
the proteasome to specifically degrade some of the IAA/AUX
proteins. Once the IAA/AUX proteins are degraded, ARF:ARF
homodimers form, bind the AREs in promoters of auxin-responsive
cells, and stimulate the transcription of these genes. In this way,
auxin can stimulate expression of genes required to carry out its
physiological effects.
http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_images.jsp?cntn_id=104205
Jasmonic acid (JA) is a fatty-acid-derived plant hormone that is similar in overall
structure to physiologically active small molecules from animals called
prostaglandins. In plants, jasmonic acid is firmly associated with pathogen
defense pathways. For example, it has been documented that the physical
stimuli of certain insects can trigger the synthesis of jasmonic acid, which then
functions to increase expression of genes involved in defending the plant, such
as the pathogenesis-related 1 (Pr1) gene. Microbial and viral pathogens can also
trigger JA synthesis, thus the study of JA-mediated events in the plant cell are of
interest to plant pathologists who wish to engineer transgenic plants that are
disease-resistant.
 Jasmonic acid: Pathogen response

http://park.itc.u-tokyo.ac.jp/biotec-res-ctr/kampo/eng/research_plant.html
Introduction: the importance of manipulation
of hormones for tissue culture
• Auxins and cytokinins are very important
– Higher auxin induces root growth
– Equal ratio induces callus and cell enlargement
– Lower auxin induces shoot growth
• Gibberellic acid germinates difficult seeds
• Add brassinosteroids for cell wall induction
 Lecture summary
• Hormones are biochemicals that regulate
plant growth based on biological and
environmental cues
• Auxin and cytokinin are key for plant growth
• Abiotic and biotic stress response is regulated
by hormones
• Cell signaling is regulated by specific receptors
on cell membranes