Wrinkles on Sepals: Cuticular Ridges Form when Cuticle Production Outpaces Epidermal Cell Expansion

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Abstract

The cuticle is a waterproof coat that covers the outer surface of plant organs exposed above the ground, such as leaves, stems,floral organs, and fruits (but not bark) (Yeats and Rose, 2013). It prevents the escape of water vapor and can protect the plant from pathogen attack and UV-B exposure. The cuticle is made from cutin, a complex polyester embedded with hydrophobic waxes, and covers the outer cell wall of the epidermis. Cutin is polymerized from u-hydroxy fatty acids by a small subfamily of GDSL lipase/hydrolases called cutin synthases (CUS) (Yeatset al., 2014). There are four members in Arabidopsis and five in tomato where they were discovered by the observation of the near absence of cutin on tomato fruits in Slcus1 mutants. CUS genes are found across all land plants, indicating the importance of the cuticle in the colonization of the land.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)540-541
Number of pages2
JournalMolecular Plant
Volume10
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 3 Apr 2017

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