AUTHOR=Jing Yanping , Zhao Fugeng , Lai Ke , Sun Fei , Sun Chenjie , Zou Xingyue , Xu Min , Fu Aigen , Sharifi Rouhallah , Chen Jian , Zheng Xiaojiang , Luan Sheng 

TITLE=Plant elicitor Peptides regulate root hair development in Arabidopsis

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Plant Science

VOLUME=15

YEAR=2024

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2024.1336129

DOI=10.3389/fpls.2024.1336129

ISSN=1664-462X

ABSTRACT=<p>Plant Elicitor Peptides (Peps) induce plant immune responses and inhibit root growth through their receptors PEPR1 and PEPR2, two receptor-like kinases. In our study, we found a previously unknown function of Peps that enhance root hair growth in a PEPRs-independent manner. When we characterized the expression patterns of <italic>PROPEP</italic> genes, we found several gene promoters of <italic>PROPEP</italic> gene family were particularly active in root hairs. Furthermore, we observed that <italic>PROPEP2</italic> is vital for root hair development, as disruption of <italic>PROPEP2</italic> gene led to a significant reduction in root hair density and length. We also discovered that <italic>PROPEP2</italic> regulates root hair formation via the modulation of <italic>CPC</italic> and <italic>GL2</italic> expression, thereby influencing the cell-fate determination of root hairs. Additionally, calcium signaling appeared to be involved in PROPEP2/Pep2-induced root hair growth. These findings shed light on the function of Peps in root hair development.</p>