RT Journal
A1 Knauer, Steffen
A1 Javelle, Marie
A1 Li, Lin
A1 Li, Xianran
A1 Ma, Xiaoli
A1 Wimalanathan, Kokulapalan
A1 Kumari, Sunita
A1 Johnston, Robyn
A1 Leiboff, Samuel
A1 Meeley, Robert
A1 Schnable, Patrick S.
A1 Ware, Doreen
A1 Lawrence-Dill, Carolyn
A1 Yu, Jianming
A1 Muehlbauer, Gary J.
A1 Scanlon, Michael J.
A1 Timmermans, Marja C.P.
T1 A high-resolution gene expression atlas links dedicated meristem genes to key architectural traits
JF Genome Research 
JO Genome Research 
YR 2019 
FD December 01 
VO 29 
IS 12 
SP 1962 
OP 1973 
DO 10.1101/gr.250878.119 
UL http://genome.cshlp.org/content/29/12/1962.abstract 
AB The shoot apical meristem (SAM) orchestrates the balance between stem cell proliferation and organ initiation essential for postembryonic shoot growth. Meristems show a striking diversity in shape and size. How this morphological diversity relates to variation in plant architecture and the molecular circuitries driving it are unclear. By generating a high-resolution gene expression atlas of the vegetative maize shoot apex, we show here that distinct sets of genes govern the regulation and identity of stem cells in maize versus Arabidopsis. Cell identities in the maize SAM reflect the combinatorial activity of transcription factors (TFs) that drive the preferential, differential expression of individual members within gene families functioning in a plethora of cellular processes. Subfunctionalization thus emerges as a fundamental feature underlying cell identity. Moreover, we show that adult plant characters are, to a significant degree, regulated by gene circuitries acting in the SAM, with natural variation modulating agronomically important architectural traits enriched specifically near dynamically expressed SAM genes and the TFs that regulate them. Besides unique mechanisms of maize stem cell regulation, our atlas thus identifies key new targets for crop improvement.