The chimeric leucine-rich repeat/extensin cell wall protein LRX1 is required for root hair morphogenesis in Arabidopsis thaliana.

ABSTRACT: In plants, the cell wall is a major determinant of cell morphogenesis. Cell enlargement depends on the tightly regulated expansion of the wall, which surrounds each cell. However, the qualitative and quantitative mechanisms controlling cell wall enlargement are still poorly understood. Here, we report the molecular and functional characterization of LRX1, a new Arabidopsis gene that encodes a chimeric leucine-rich repeat/extensin protein. LRX1 is expressed in root hair cells and the protein is specifically localized in the wall of the hair proper, where it becomes insolubilized during development. lrx1-null mutants, isolated by a reverse-genetic approach, develop root hairs that frequently abort, swell, or branch. Complementation and overexpression experiments using modified LRX1 proteins

SUBMITTER: Baumberger N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC312681 | biostudies-literature | 2001 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature