Proper gibberellin localization in vascular tissue is required to regulate adventitious root development in tobacco

Abstract

Bioactive gibberellins (GAs) are involved in many developmental aspects of the life cycle of plants, acting either directly or through interaction with other hormones. Accumulating evidence suggests that GAs have an important effect on root growth; however, there is currently little information on the specific regulatory mechanism of GAs during adventitious root development. A study was conducted on tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) plants for altered rates of biosynthesis, catabolism, and GA signalling constitutively or in specific tissues using a transgenic approach. In the present study, PtGA20ox, PtGA2ox1, and PtGAI were overexpressed under the control of the 35S promoter, vascular cambium-specific promoter (LMX5), or root meristem-specific promoter (TobRB7), respectively. Evidence is provided that the precise localization of bioactive GA in the stem but not in the roots is required to regulate adventitious root development in tobacco. High levels of GA negatively regulate the early initiation step of root formation through interactions with auxin, while a proper and mobile GA signal is required for the emergence and subsequent long-term elongation of established primordia. The results demonstrated that GAs have an inhibitory effect on adventitious root formation but a stimulatory effect on root elongation. © The Author [2013].