The role of plant hormones during grafting

Amrit K Nanda,Charles W Melnyk

doi:10.1007/s10265-017-0994-5

Amrit K Nanda, Charles W Melnyk

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10265-017-0994-5

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Abstract

For millennia, people have cut and joined different plant tissues together through a process known as grafting. By creating a chimeric organism, desirable properties from two plants combine to enhance disease resistance, abiotic stress tolerance, vigour or facilitate the asexual propagation of plants. In addition, grafting has been extremely informative in science for studying and identifying the long-distance movement of molecules. Despite its increasing use in horticulture and science, how plants undertake the process of grafting remains elusive. Here, we discuss specifically the role of eight major plant hormones during the wound healing and vascular formation process, two phenomena involved in grafting. We furthermore present the roles of these hormones during graft formation and highlight knowledge gaps and future areas of interest for the field of grafting biology.

Highlights

The plant vascular tissue is crucial for transporting water, nutrients, photosynthetic products and signalling molecules throughout the plant
Where insufficient information on their role in grafting is present, we look to the role of these hormones in wound healing and vascular formation in plants, since it is thought that graft formation includes elements of these processes (Melnyk 2017)
Auxin appears to be the primary regulator of vascular cell differentiation and patterning with other hormones interacting with the auxin biosynthesis, transport and/or signalling pathways to fine-tune this process (Fig. 1)

Summary

Introduction

The plant vascular tissue is crucial for transporting water, nutrients, photosynthetic products and signalling molecules throughout the plant. It provides mechanical support, thereby allowing an increase in plant stature and adaptation to various environments. Minerals and nutrients from roots to shoots, whereas phloem transports photoassimilates from source to sink tissues. Signalling molecules, such as phytohormones, are transported by these tissues. Vascular tissues come in various patterns depending on plant species, age and organ type

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Conclusion