One of our main topics of interest is the study of endodermis as an invariant feature of vascular plants. It fulfils a crucial barrier function separating the extracellular space of outer cell layers from the inner apoplastic space of the vascular bundles. The "Casparian strip" has been defined as an area where endodermal cells secrete hydrophobic material in a highly localised and coordinated fashion to act as a barrier. The Casparian strip is composed of a ligno-suberic polymer, which forms an extensive, supra-cellular network. We demonstrate that there is no lateral diffusion across the Casparian Strip Domain (CSD) between outer and inner plasma membrane domains and we have identified transporters that localise to one or the other membrane region, depending on their function in uptake or efflux of nutrients. In addition we identified a new class of proteins that mark and predict the formation of the CSD. We will investigate the mechanisms underlying the formation of the Casparian Strip sub-domain on cellular surface and the localisation of proteins to either its central or peripheral side.

• Minimum requirements for changing and maintaining endodermis cell identity in the Arabidopsis root
  Drapek, C; Sparks, EE; Marhavy, P; Taylor, I; Andersen, TG; Hennacy, JH; Geldner, N; Benfey, PN
  NATURE PLANTS, 4 (8):586-595; 10.1038/s41477-018-0213-y AUG 2018
• Correction: Diffusible repression of cytokinin signalling produces endodermal symmetry and passage cells
  Andersen, Tonni Grube; Naseer, Sadaf; Ursache, Robertas;  Wybouw, Brecht; Smet, Wouter; De Rybel, Bert; Vermeer, Joop EM; Geldner, Niko
  NATURE (2018) DOI: 10.1038/nature25976), NATURE 10.1038/s41586-018-0231-y
• CLERK is a novel receptor kinase required for sensing of root-active CLE peptides in Arabidopsis
  Anne, Pauline; Amiguet-Vercher, Amelia; Brandt, Benjamin; Kalmbach, Lothar; Geldner, Niko; Hothorn, Michael; Hardtke, Christian S
  DEVELOPMENT   Volume: 145   Issue: 10     Article Number: UNSP dev162354  https://doi.org/10.1242/dev.162354 MAY 2018
• Diffusible repression of cytokinin signalling produces endodermal symmetry and passage cells
  Andersen, Tonni Grube; Naseer, Sadaf; Ursache, Robertas;  Wybouw, Brecht; Smet, Wouter; De Rybel, Bert; Vermeer, Joop EM; Geldner, Niko
  NATURE   Volume: 555   Issue: 7697   Pages: 529-+   10.1038/nature25976 MAR 22 2018
• A protocol for combining fluorescent proteins with histological stains for diverse cell wall components 
  Ursache, Robertas; Andersen, Tonni Grube; Marhavy, Peter; et al. 
  PLANT JOURNAL, 93 (2): 399-412,  JAN 2018 10.1111/tpj.13784
• In roots of Arabidopsis thaliana, the damage-associated molecular pattern AtPep1 is a stronger elicitor of immune signalling than flg22 or the chitin heptamer 
  Poncini, Lorenzo; Wyrsch, Ines; Tendon, Valerie Denervaud; Vorley, Thomas; Boller, Thomas; Geldner, Niko; Metraux, Jean-Pierre; Lehmann, Silke
  PLOS ONE, 12 (10):  https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0185808 OCT 3 2017
• The endodermis, a tightly controlled barrier for nutrients 
  Doblas, Veronica G.; Geldner, Niko; Barberon, Marie 
  CURRENT OPINION IN PLANT BIOLOGY, 39: 136-143, 10.1016/j.pbi.2017.06.010 OCT 2017
• In Vivo Imaging of Diacylglycerol at the Cytoplasmic Leaflet of Plant Membranes 
  Vermeer, Joop E. M.; van Wijk, Ringo; Goedhart, Joachim; et al. 
  PLANT AND CELL PHYSIOLOGY, 58 (7): 1196-1207, https://doi.org/10.1093/pcp/pcx012 JUL 2017
• An N-acetylglucosamine transporter required for arbuscular mycorrhizal symbioses in rice and maize 
  Nadal, Marina; Sawers, Ruairidh; Naseem, Shamoon; et al. 
  NATURE PLANTS, 3 (6): JUN 2017 Article (Details)

• The root endodermis as a polar epithelium 
• Receptor trafficking in plants 
• Waves lines: Mapping the complexity of the plant membrane system

• WAVE lines: a set of fluorescent markers for plant membrane compartments
• The pNIGEL recombination vector series
• Live cell imaging
• Forward and reverse genetic screens
• Proteomic approaches