We are good to grow: Dynamic integration of cell wall architecture with the machinery of growth

Abstract

Despite differences in cell wall composition between the type I cell walls of dicots and most monocots and the type II walls of commelinid monocots, all flowering plants respond to the same classes of growth regulators in the same tissue-specific way and exhibit the same growth physics. Substantial progress has been made in defining gene families and identifying mutants in cell wall-related genes, but our understanding of the biochemical basis of wall extensibility during growth is still rudimentary. In this review, we highlight insights into the physiological control of cell expansion emerging from genetic functional analyses, mostly in Arabidopsis and other dicots, and a few examples of genes of potential orthologous function in grass species. We discuss examples of cell wall architectural features that impact growth independent of composition, and progress in identifying proteins involved in transduction of growth signals and integrating their outputs in the molecular machinery of wall expansion. © 2012 Benatti, Penning, Carpita and McCann.