In plants, stem cells are maintained in structures known as meristems, which produce plant organs. Floral meristems (FMs) produce one flower consisting of a finite number of organs such as stamens and carpels, which are formed sequentially from primordia. So far, the real-time cellular dynamics of floral organ primordia initiation and floral meristem termination (FMT) have not been well described. Now, Ya Min, Stephanie Conway and Elena Kramer use live imaging of an in vitro culture of Aquilegia coerulea (from the buttercup family) to describe growth dynamics during late stages of flower development and FMT. They find that both cell expansion and cell division rate are higher in the peripheral meristem than in the centre during stamen, staminode and carpel development. Furthermore, they observe that the initial outgrowth of all the organ primordia is characterised by high rates of growth on the abaxial side, which faces away from the stem, followed by more isotropic expansion. The authors also identify an increase in cell division during carpel primordia initiation, which is coincident with the onset of FMT. Together, these data describe the dynamics during FM transitions in a complex flower and offer insights in the role of cell division in carpel formation.
Build me up, buttercup
- Split-screen
- Views Icon Views
-
Article Versions Icon
Versions
- Version of Record 17 February 2022
- Share Icon Share
-
Tools Icon
Tools
- Search Site
Build me up, buttercup. Development 15 February 2022; 149 (4): e149_e0401. doi:
Download citation file:
Advertisement
Cited by
Biologists @ 100 - join us in Liverpool in March 2025

We are excited to invite you to a unique scientific conference, celebrating the 100-year anniversary of The Company of Biologists, and bringing together our different communities. The conference will incorporate the Spring Meetings of the BSCB and the BSDB, the JEB Symposium Sensory Perception in a Changing World and a DMM programme on antimicrobial resistance. Find out more and register by 28 February 2025 to join us in March 2025 in Liverpool, UK.
Call for papers – Lifelong Development: the Maintenance, Regeneration and Plasticity of Tissues

Development invites you to submit your latest research to our upcoming special issue – Lifelong Development: the Maintenance, Regeneration and Plasticity of Tissues. This issue will be coordinated by Guest Editors Meritxell Huch (Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Germany) and Mansi Srivastava (Harvard University and Museum of Comparative Zoology, USA), working alongside our team of academic Editors. Submit your articles by 15 May 2025.
A case for broadening our view of mechanism in developmental biology

In this Perspective, B. Duygu Özpolat and colleagues survey researchers on their views on what it takes to infer mechanism in developmental biology. They examine what factors shape our idea of what we mean by ‘mechanism’ and suggest a path forward that embraces a broad outlook on the diversity of studies that advance knowledge in our field.
In preprints
Did you know that Development publishes perspectives on recent preprints? These articles help our readers navigate the ever-growing preprint literature. We welcome proposals for ‘In preprints’ articles, so please do get in touch if you’d like to contribute.