Interaction of light and hormone signalling to mediate photomorphogenesis

Abstract

Though this chapter has addressed the role of gibberellin, auxin, brassinosteroid, ethylene and cytokinin hormone signalling pathways as they interact with photomorphogenesis, it is quite likely that other hormones will also be involved with these critical plant responses. Clearly it will be quite difficult to build a simple model describing the complex interaction between multiple photoreceptor-mediated light signalling pathways and each of these phytohormones. Given the diversity of responses to both light and hormones across plant species, it is unlikely that a single, unifying model will ever be supported. However, detailed analysis of each interaction between hormone and photoreceptor as well as the complications caused by interactions amongst the different hormones (and between the multiple photoreceptor signalling pathways) will give us a better handle on how plants exquisitely refine their development in the face of an ever-changing light environment.