Abstract
The morphological changes are usually observed in the terrestrial plants to respond to physical barriers. The phytohormone ethylene plays an essential role in the morphological development of plants encountering exogenous mechanical impedance, which enables plants to grow optimally in response to physical barriers. Ethylene is shown to regulate these developmental processes directly or in concert with other phytohormones, especially auxin. In this mini review, the involvement of ethylene action in seedling emergence from the soil, root movement within the soil, and parasitic plant invasion of the host plant are described.
Highlights
In natural environments, the life cycle of terrestrial plants usually starts with the germination of seeds buried under the soil
Parasitic plants, whose survival depends on the host plants, encounter the physical barrier provided by the host plants, thereby they need to penetrate through the host tissues to access nutrients
Ethylene promotes the environmental adaption of plants by regulating diverse morphological development
Summary
The life cycle of terrestrial plants usually starts with the germination of seeds buried under the soil. Seedlings need to successfully fulfill emergence from the soil to establish a photoautotrophic lifestyle, and the roots of seedling should forage soil for mineral nutrients and water acquisition. During these processes, the shoots and roots are subjected to mechanical stress from the soil. Parasitic plants, whose survival depends on the host plants, encounter the physical barrier provided by the host plants, thereby they need to penetrate through the host tissues to access nutrients To acclimate to these physical barriers, plants adopt a developmental strategy by which they adjust their morphological modifications in accordance with the mechanical impedance (Leivar et al, 2008; Yoshida et al, 2016; Gommers and Monte, 2018; Vaseva et al, 2018), such as hypocotyl thickening, apical hook formation, and root shortening occur within autotrophic plants and haustoria emergence within parasitic plants. It is not surprising that terrestrial plants employ ethylene as the vital signal molecule to regulate the directional growth of plant organs since the ethylene
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