The ability to regulate growth is pivotal to plant fitness and survival. The formation of all aboveground tissues and organs is controlled in the shoot apical meristem, where multiple signalling pathways converge to adjust growth to a diverse combination of developmental stages and environmental conditions. However, little is known of how this information is integrated and translated into adequate growth decisions. Growth relies on energy availability and, in plants, the SnRK1 protein kinase is one of the central components involved in energy sensing and management.
Our goal is to elucidate the molecular mechanisms that transduce the information of the plant energy status into shoot apical meristem activity in Arabidopsis thaliana. To examine this complex network, we have used fluorescent reporters, phenotypical analyses, and in vitro biochemical approaches. We have provided evidence that the SnRK1 kinase influences meristem activity in planta and have identified meristem-specific transcription factors that are able to interact with and be phosphorylated by SnRK1 in vitro. Based on these observations, we propose that the SnRK1 kinase acts as central regulator of SAM activity, adjusting it to the energy status through action on core meristematic transcription factors.
I will present the latest insights of my PhD research together with previous research from our group on how plant growth is governed by energy availability.