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Review
. 2023 Jun 26;24(13):10666.
doi: 10.3390/ijms241310666.

Molecular Network for Regulation of Seed Size in Plants

Jinghua Zhang  1 , Xuan Zhang  1 , Xueman Liu  1 , Qiaofeng Pai  1 , Yahui Wang  1 , Xiaolin Wu  1
Affiliations
Review

Molecular Network for Regulation of Seed Size in Plants

Jinghua Zhang et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

The size of seeds is particularly important for agricultural development, as it is a key trait that determines yield. It is controlled by the coordinated development of the integument, endosperm, and embryo. Large seeds are an important way of improving the ultimate "sink strength" of crops, providing more nutrients for early plant growth and showing certain tolerance to abiotic stresses. There are several pathways for regulating plant seed size, including the HAIKU (IKU) pathway, ubiquitin-proteasome pathway, G (Guanosine triphosphate) protein regulatory pathway, mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway, transcriptional regulators pathway, and phytohormone regulatory pathways including the auxin, brassinosteroid (BR), gibberellin (GA), jasmonic acid (JA), cytokinin (CK), Abscisic acid (ABA), and microRNA (miRNA) regulatory pathways. This article summarizes the seed size regulatory network and prospective ways of improving yield. We expect that it will provide a valuable reference to researchers in related fields.

Keywords: G protein; IKU; MAPK; miRNA; phytohormone; seed size; transcription factor; ubiquitin.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Various signaling pathways involved in seeds development.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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