Abscission in plants: from mechanism to applications

Abstract

Abscission refers to the natural separation of plant structures from their parent plants, regulated by external environmental signals or internal factors such as stress and aging. It is an advantageous process as it enables plants to shed unwanted organs, thereby regulating nutrient allocation and ensuring the dispersal of fruits and seeds from the parent. However, in agriculture and horticulture, abscission can severely reduce crop quality and yield. In this review, we summarize the recent advances in plant abscission from the perspectives of developmental and molecular biology, emphasizing the diverse regulatory networks across different plant lineages, from model plants to crops. The sophisticated process of plant abscission involves several overlapping steps, including the differentiation of the abscission zone, activation of abscission, tissue detachment, and formation of a protective layer. Finally, we discuss the potential applications of physiological modifications and genetic manipulations of plant abscission in sustainable agriculture in the future.

Keywords: Abscission zone; Agriculture; Molecular mechanism; Plant abscission.

Fig. 1

The process and molecular control of plant abscission. a Three overlapped steps during floral organ abscission in Arabidopsis. Abscission zone: AZ; se: sepal; pe: petal; st: stamen; green circles: other cells; red circles: differentiated cells in AZ; yellow circles: activated cells in AZ; blue circles: transdifferentiated cells on the surface of receptacle. (b-d) Molecular control of plant abscission in Arabidopsis thaliana (b), Solanum lycopersicum (c) and Oryza sativa (d). Dashed green lines: hypothetical pathways