Variability in the Control of Cell Division Underlies Sepal Epidermal Patterning in Arabidopsis thaliana

• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.1000367
• Publication Date: 2010-05-11T20:36:06Z
• Authors: Adrienne H. K. Ro...; Vijay Chickarmane; Alexandre Cunha; Boguslaw Obara; B. S. Manjunath; Elliot M. Meyerowitz
• Keywords: Sepal; Endoreduplication; Epidermis (zoology)

How growth and proliferation are precisely controlled in organs during development how the regulation of cell division contributes to formation complex type patterns important questions developmental biology. Such a pattern diverse sizes is characteristic sepals, outermost floral organs, plant Arabidopsis thaliana. To determine size formed sepal epidermis, we iterate between generating predictions from computational model testing these through time-lapse imaging. We show that diversity due variability decisions individual cells about when divide stop dividing enter specialized endoreduplication cycle. further altering activity cycle inhibitors biases timing changes as our predicts. Models observations together demonstrate time major determinant pattern.