植物核糖体应激响应机制研究进展

核仁是真核细胞中重要的核结构,核糖体发生最初在核仁中进行,该过程涉及一系列复杂的反应,需要许多核仁相关因子参与。核糖体生物发生出现异常通常引起核仁结构紊乱,并导致细胞周期阻滞、细胞衰老甚至凋亡。核糖体应激响应机制在哺乳动物细胞中研究得较为深入,但在植物细胞中尚不明晰。尽管如此,人们逐渐发现某些植物特有的NAC转录因子家族成员在植物细胞中可能参与包括核糖体应激在内的多种胞内应激响应过程。此外,前期研究发现生长素系统与核糖体生物合成之间存在一种相互协调机制来调控植物发育。该文结合哺乳动物细胞中已知的核糖体应激响应通路,探讨植物细胞潜在的核糖体应激机制。     

细胞壁与细胞的发育

细胞壁除了起着机械支持、参与物质运输和防御反应等功能外,与细胞的发育密切相关。它们可作为信号分子,促进植物细胞的分裂增殖,决定细胞的分化方向,参与细胞识别过程等。概述了近年来细胞壁调节细胞发育的新进展。     

植物发育过程中的细胞程序性死亡

细胞程序性死亡(PCD)是植物发育过程中必不可少的一部分,近年来对植物发育过程中的细胞程序性死亡机制的研究已经广泛开展。植物发育过程中的PCD对植物自身形态建成和组织分化有重要意义。一般认为动、植物的PCD有很大的相似性,但植物发育过程也有着独特的PCD机制,例如依靠有裂解功能的液泡来参与PCD。通过比较植物和其他生物发育过程中的PCD,可对植物发育过程中PCD的特征有着更深入的了解。说明植物发育过程中PCD的研究将在理论和生产上有重大意义。     

细胞外基质在植物发育中的作用

植物细胞壁是由纤维素和果胶交联的多糖和蛋白质构成的既彼此独立,又相互作用的三维动力学网络。和动物的细胞外基质一样,植物细胞壁中的许多成分积极地参与植物细胞发育过程的调节,它们以某种方式将信息传递给细胞,调节细胞的行为,以便对各种外界环境作出相应的反应。因此细胞壁不再是一种环绕植物细胞的惰性结构,比起细胞壁,植物细胞外基质这一名词更能反映出这一动力学的特性。     

细胞外基质在植物发育中的作用

植物细胞壁是由纤维素和果胶交联的多糖和蛋白质构成的既彼此独立,又相互作用的三维动力学网络。和动物的细胞外基质一样,植物细胞壁中的许多成分积极地参与植物细胞发育过程的调节,它们以某种方式将信息传递给细胞,调节细胞的行为,以便对各种外界环境作出相应的反应。因此细胞壁不再是一种环绕植物细胞的惰性结构,比起细胞壁,植物细胞外基质这一名词更能反映出这一动力学的特性。     

植物根毛发育调控机制的研究进展

根毛是植物根表皮细胞的管状延伸结构,在植物固着土壤、吸收水分和无机盐,以及协助植物根部和外界进行信息交流等过程中起到十分重要的作用。植物根毛的发育过程具有很强的可塑性,多种植物激素和环境因素都可以影响植物根毛的发育过程。得益于根毛结构和功能的特点,其也常被作为研究植物细胞顶端生长和命运分化的模式对象。因而,根毛的发育调控机制一直是植物学研究领域的热点。该文梳理了近20年来植物根毛发育调控领域的研究进展。     

重金属污染土壤植物修复中细胞分裂素的作用与机制

植物修复因投资成本低、环境扰动少、二次污染易控制、美化环境等优点成为重金属污染土壤修复重要的治理技术。植物内源细胞分裂素调控植物生理活动,外源细胞分裂素对植物生理生态特征产生显著影响,且在植物修复中逐渐受到研究人员的关注。细胞分裂素能够调控植物根茎发育、叶片衰老、激素传递等过程,同时在重金属胁迫下也参与蒸腾、光合、抗性、解毒等系统的运转。以细胞分裂素对植物生理活动的调控作用研究为基础,阐述了细胞分裂素在植物修复中的作用机制。主要包括：增强光合作用,延缓叶片衰老,提升植物抗性能力;调控根茎叶发育,增加植物生物量,强化植物富集效果;增强转运蛋白表达,提高叶面蒸腾作用,促进重金属吸收转运;参与解毒过程,降低重金属毒性,调控重金属体内转化。最后提出了细胞分裂素在重金属污染土壤植物修复中的研究方向,这对促进细胞分裂素在植物修复中的实际应用具有重要意义。     

miRNA在植物种子发育过程中的作用

MicroRNA(miRNA)是一类小分子非编码RNA,通过降解靶基因途径在转录后水平调控基因表达,参与植物生长、发育以及逆境胁迫应答等多种细胞代谢活动。种子是植物生长的基础要素,是农业生产的重要资料。与种子发育相关的miRNA已在多种植物中得到鉴定。文章综述了参与植物种子发育过程的miRNA及其在种子发育中的具体调控机制,旨在为利用miRNA提高种子遗传特性提供研究思路。     

植物受体蛋白激酶的研究进展

在植物中存在一种由胞外结构域、跨膜区域和胞内的蛋白激酶区域三部分组成的跨膜受体蛋白激酶（receptor-lik protein kinases,RLKs)。该蛋白一方面作为胞外特异配基的受体,同时本身又是一种蛋白激酶。研究表明,植物细胞中的RLKs可能参与了植物细胞抗逆反应,植物形态发生、自交不亲和等生理生化反应,作者将从RLKs的结构、种类,基因表达方式及其植物生长和发育过程中的作用做简要介绍。     

植物MYB类转录因子研究进展

植物MYB转录因子以含有保守的MYB结构域为共同特征,广泛参与植物发育和代谢的调节。含单一MYB结构域的MYB转录因子在维持染色体结构和转录调节上发挥着重要作用,是MYB转录因子家族中较为特殊的一类。含两个MYB结构域的MYB转录因子成员众多,在植物体内主要参与次一代谢的调节和控制细胞的形态发生。含3个MYB结构域的MYB蛋白与c-MYB蛋白高度同源,可能在调节细胞周期中起作用。     

Cell cycling through development

Regardless of the species, the development of a multicellular organism requires the precise execution of essential developmental processes including patterning, growth, proliferation and differentiation. The cell cycle, in addition to its role as coordinator of DNA replication and mitosis, is also a coordinator of developmental processes, and is a target of developmental signaling pathways. Perhaps because of its central role during development, the cell cycle mechanism, its regulation and its effects on developing tissues is remarkably complex. It was in this light that the Keystone meeting on the cell cycle and development at Snowbird, Utah in January 2004 was held.     

Determinative Developmental Cell Lineages Are Robust to Cell Deaths

All forms of life are confronted with environmental and genetic perturbations, making phenotypic robustness an important characteristic of life. Although development has long been viewed as a key component of phenotypic robustness, the underlying mechanism is unclear. Here we report that the determinative developmental cell lineages of two protostomes and one deuterostome are structured such that the resulting cellular compositions of the organisms are only modestly affected by cell deaths. Several features of the cell lineages, including their shallowness, topology, early ontogenic appearances of rare cells, and non-clonality of most cell types, underlie the robustness. Simple simulations of cell lineage evolution demonstrate the possibility that the observed robustness arose as an adaptation in the face of random cell deaths in development. These results reveal general organizing principles of determinative developmental cell lineages and a conceptually new mechanism of phenotypic robustness, both of which have important implications for development and evolution.     

Cell fate in the Drosophila ommatidium

Lesions in the Drosophila gene sevenless cause the cell normally destined to differentiate as photoreceptor 7 of the ommatidium to become an accessory lens-secreting cell, the equatorial cone cell. In both P-element- and EMS-induced alleles, the developmental transformation occurs identically. The mutation is cell autonomous, showing that the developmental failure is intrinsic to the transformed cell. Histological and immunological analyses indicate that the cell fails to operate any photoreceptor differentiation machinery prior to adopting the cone cell pathway.     

Cell cycle and differentiation

The development of multicellular organisms relies on the temporal and spatial control of cell proliferation and cell growth. The relationship between cell-cycle progression and development is complex and characterized by mutual dependencies. On the level of the individual cell, this interrelationship has implications for pattern formation and cell morphogenesis. On a supercellular level, this interrelationship affects meristem function and organ growth. Often, developmental signals not only direct cell-cycle progression but also set the frame for cell-cycle regulation by determining cell-type-specific cell-cycle modes. In other cases, however, cell-cycle progression appears to be required for the further differentiation of some cell types. There are also examples in which cell cycle and differentiation seem to be controlled at the same level and progress rather independently from each other or are linked by the same regulator or pathway. Furthermore, different relationships between cell cycle and differentiation can be combined in a succession of events during development, leading to complex developmental programs.     

Planar Cell Polarity Signaling in Collective Cell Movements During Morphogenesis and Disease

Collective and directed cell movements are crucial for diverse developmental processes in the animal kingdom, but they are also involved in wound repair and disease. During these processes groups of cells are oriented within the tissue plane, which is referred to as planar cell polarity (PCP). This requires a tight regulation that is in part conducted by the PCP pathway. Although this pathway was initially characterized in flies, subsequent studies in vertebrates revealed a set of conserved core factors but also effector molecules and signal modulators, which build the fundamental PCP machinery. The PCP pathway in Drosophila regulates several developmental processes involving collective cell movements such as border cell migration during oogenesis, ommatidial rotation during eye development, and embryonic dorsal closure. During vertebrate embryogenesis, PCP signaling also controls collective and directed cell movements including convergent extension during gastrulation, neural tube closure, neural crest cell migration, or heart morphogenesis. Similarly, PCP signaling is linked to processes such as wound repair, and cancer invasion and metastasis in adults. As a consequence, disruption of PCP signaling leads to pathological conditions. In this review, we will summarize recent findings about the role of PCP signaling in collective cell movements in flies and vertebrates. In addition, we will focus on how studies in Drosophila have been relevant to our understanding of the PCP molecular machinery and will describe several developmental defects and human disorders in which PCP signaling is compromised. Therefore, new discoveries about the contribution of this pathway to collective cell movements could provide new potential diagnostic and therapeutic targets for these disorders.     

Cell cycle regulation in higher plants

The isolation of plant genes homologous to cdk and cyclin components from yeast and animals proves the existence of a basic cell cycle machinery in all eukaryotes. cdk and cyclin expression has been shown to be involved in the spatial and temporal control of cell division in a variety of developmental processes. In plants, cell division and development are closely interlinked processes that are regulated by phytohormones. cdks and cyclins were found to be under control of phytohormones underscoring their integral role in mediating different developmental pathways. Furthermore, studies on cdk and cyclin expression not only correlate with actual cell cycle activity but also with cell division competence providing a working model to understand regeneration capacity at the molecular level.     

Cell cycle controls and the development of plant form

The relationship between cell division and plant form has long been a battleground for the debate between those proclaiming and disclaiming an important role for cell division in morphogenetic and developmental processes. Recent evidence suggests that cell division and morphogenesis are intimately interconnected, and whereas overall architecture is determined by patterning genes, the elaboration and execution of developmental programmes require proper control of the cell-division cycle.     

Regulatory T Cell Ablation Causes Acute T Cell Lymphopenia

Regulatory T (Treg) cells enforce T cell homeostasis and maintain peripheral T cell tolerance. Here we report a previously unappreciated phenomenon of acute T cell lymphopenia in secondary lymphoid organs and non-lymphoid tissues triggered by Treg cell depletion that precedes the expansion of self-reactive T cells. Lymphopenia affects both neonates and adults indicating a dominant role of Treg cells in maintaining peripheral T cell numbers regardless of the developmental stage. The lymphopenia was neither triggered by caspase-dependent apoptosis nor macrophage-mediated clearance of T cells, nor diminished survival of naïve or recently activated T cells due to paucity of IL-7. It is possible that transient lymphopenia associated with congenital or acute Treg cell deficiency may contribute to the development of T cell mediated autoimmune disorders.     

Cell migration during gastrulation

As the gateway to shaping the body plan, gastrulation is an important problem in developmental biology, and recent advances in cell biology have overcome some of the limitations of past approaches to learning how genes control reshaping of embryonic tissues. The use of fluorescent tracer dyes and live cell imaging methods to evaluate at the cellular level the results of genetic and molecular manipulations has advanced our understanding of the cell motility and contact behavior underlying tissue remodeling during gastrulation.