Plant Cell Biology

Osmotically-driven turgor pressure of plant cells can be higher than that of a car tire. It puts tremendous forces onto cell walls and drives changes in cell shape. This has given rise to unique mechanisms to control organ formation in comparison to metazoans. The fascinating interplay between forces and local cellular reorganization is poorly understood. Growth of lateral roots is a prominent example of a developmental process in which mechanical forces between neighboring cells are generated. Lateral roots grow from a single cell layer that resides deep within the primary root. On its way out, lateral roots grow through the overlying endodermal, cortical and epidermal cell layers. We recently demonstrated that endodermal cells actively accommodate lateral root formation. Responses include a dramatic volume loss and a controlled degradation of their lignin-based paracellular diffusion barrier. The lateral root system provides a unique opportunity to elucidate the molecular and cellular mechanisms how mechanical forces and intercellular communication regulate spatial accommodation during plant development.

• Geometric cues forecast the switch from two- to three-dimensional growth in Physcomitrella patens
  Tang, Han; Duijts, Kilian; Bezanilla, Magdalena; Scheres, Ben; Vermeer, Joop E. M.; et al.
  New Phytologist DOI: 10.1111/nph.16276, MAR 2020
• Cytoskeleton Dynamics Are Necessary for Early Events of Lateral Root Initiation in Arabidopsis
  Barro, AV; Stockle, D; Thellmann, M; Ruiz-Duarte, P; Bald, L; Louveaux, M; von Bom, P; Denninger, P; Goh, T; Fukaki, H; Vermeer, JEM; Maizel, A
  CURRENT BIOLOGY, 29 (15):2443-+; 10.1016/j.cub.2019.06.039 AUG 5 2019
• The role of plant root systems in evolutionary adaptation
  Shekhar, V; Stockle, D; Thellmann, M; Vermeer, JEM
  Edited by: Grossniklaus U
  PLANT DEVELOPMENT AND EVOLUTION, 131 55-+; 10.1016/bs.ctdb.2018.11.011 2019
• Exocyst subunit Sec6 is positioned by microtubule overlaps in the moss phragmoplast prior to cell plate membrane arrival
  Tang, H; de Keijzer, J; Overdijk, EJR; Sweep, E; Steentjes, M; Vermeer, JEM; Janson, ME; Ketelaar, T
  JOURNAL OF CELL SCIENCE, 132 (3):10.1242/jcs.222430 FEB 2019
• Root branching toward water involves posttranslational modification of transcription factor ARF7
  Orosa-Puente, B; Leftley, N; von Wangenheim, D; Banda, J; Srivastava, AK; Hill, K; Truskina, J; Bhosale, R; Morris, E; Srivastava, M; Kumpers, B; Goh, T; Fukaki, H; Vermeer, JEM; Vernoux, T; Dinneny, JR; French, AP; Bishopp, A; Sadanandom, A; Bennett, MJ
  SCIENCE, 362 (6421):1407-+; SI 10.1126/science.aau3956 DEC 21 2018
• Diffusible repression of cytokinin signalling produces endodermal symmetry and passage cells.
  Andersen TG, Naseer S, Ursache R, Wybouw B, Smet W, De Rybel B, Vermeer JEM, Geldner N.
  Nature. 2018 Mar 22;555(7697):529-533. doi: 10.1038/nature25976. Epub 2018 Mar 14. PMID:29539635
• 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 OCT 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
• Breakout - lateral root emergence in Arabidopsis thaliana
  Stoeckle, D; Thellmann, M; Vermeer, JEM
  CURRENT OPINION IN PLANT BIOLOGY 41: 67-72 FEB 2018 DOI: 10.1016/j.pbi.2017.09.005
• Green light for quantitative live-cell imaging in plants 
  Grossmann, G; Krebs, M; Maizel, A; et al. 
  JOURNAL OF CELL SCIENCE, 131 (2): JAN 2018

• Lateral root development
• Cell volume regulation
• Mechanosensing
• Development
• Cell biology

• Arabidopsis functional genomics
• Live cell imaging
• Computational morphodynamics
• Greengate cloning