ETHYLENE PERCEPTION - FROM 2-COMPONENT SIGNAL TRANSDUCERS TO GENE INDUCTION

The plant hormone ethylene is produced and perceived in response to a wide variety of environmental and developmental cues. Ethylene regulat es plant development as well as coordinating the processes of fertiliz ation, senescence, wounding and pathogen response. Recent studies of g enetic mutants have provided a detailed picture of how plant hormones act at the molecular level. For ethylene, genetic and biochemical evid ence has delineated key elements in a pathway that begins with binding by a specific receptor - this is followed by a phosphorelay through t wo-component signal transducers thereby activating downstream protein kinase cascades that lead to gene induction.