Abstract

The shoot apical meristem of seed plants gives rise to the above-ground parts of the plants during development, including leaves, stems, and lateral meristems. Among them, two types of meristems, axillary meristem and vascular cambium, support the main lateral growth. In this review, we will discuss the regulatory network of lateral growth, focusing on recent progress made mainly in Arabidopsis thaliana, tomato and maize, including the identification of genes and their roles in controlling lateral meristems. In addition, we will summarize the latest evidence about how meristem affects yield-related traits, and discuss the strategies for modulating meristem regulatory genes so as to increase crop yield in agriculture.

Keywords: Meristem, initiation, transcription factors, hormone, crop, yield.