Cell Function Research Team

What controls 'size' in biological systems is a fundamental question but the intrinsic mechanism that mediates this control remains largely unknown. The goal of our research is to unravel genetic mechanisms that determine cell and organ size in plants and to explore new strategies to improve yield and quality of economically important plant species. Cell and organ size in plants is defined by highly dynamic, intersecting signalling pathways that involve genetic, hormonal and environmental cues. We identify sets of genes that act in these pathways and unravel complex regulatory networks that control size in higher plants.

Research Fields

Biology & Biochemistry / Molecular Biology & Genetics / Agricultural Sciences / Plant & Animal Science

Research Subjects

• Genetic dissection of cell-size control in plants
• Identification of molecular components that control organ size in plants
• Chemical genetic screening of plant cell size/organ size modulators

Publications

1. Breuer C, Morohashi K, Kawamura A, Takahashi N. Ishida T, Umeda M, Grotewold E, and Sugimoto K.
   "Transcriptional repression of the APC/C activator CCS52A1 promotes the active termination of cell growth"
   EMBO J 31, 4488-4801 (2012)
2. Schneider K, Breuer C, Kawamura A, Jikumaru Y, Hanada A, Fujioka S, Ichikawa T, Kondou Y, Minami M, Kamiya Y, Yamaguchi S, and Sugimoto K.
   "Arabidopsis PIZZA has the capacity to acylate brassinosteroids"
   PLoS ONE 7(10):e46805 (2012)
3. Ishida T, Yoshimura M, Miura K, and Sugimoto K.
   "MMS21/HPY2 and SIZ1, two Arabidopsis SUMO E3 ligases, have distinct functions in development"
   PLoS ONE 7(10):e46897 (2012)
4. Kobayashi K, Baba S, Obayashi T, Sato M, Toyooka K, Keränen M, Eva-Mari A, Fukaki H, Ohta H, Sugimoto K, and Masuda T.
   "Regulation of root greening by light and auxin/cytokinin signaling in Arabidopsis"
   Plant Cell 24: 1081-1095 (2012)
5. Iwase A, Ohme-Takagi M and Sugimoto K.
   "WIND1: A key molecular switch for plant cell dedifferentiation"
   Plant Signaling & Behavior 6(12): 1943-1945 (2011)
6. Iwase A, Mitsuda N, Koyama T, Hiratsu K, Kojima M, Arai T, Inoue Y, Seki M, Sakakibara H, Sugimoto K and Ohme-Takagi M
   "The AP2/ERF transcription factor WIND1 controls cell dedifferentiation in Arabidopsis"
   Curr Biol 21(6): 508-514 (2011)
7. Ishida, T., Adachi, S., Yoshimura, M., Shimizu, K., Umeda, M. and Sugimoto, K.
   "Auxin modulates the transition from the mitotic cycle to the endocycle in Arabidopsis"
   Development 137: 63-71 (2010)
8. Breuer C, Kawamura A, Ichikawa T, Tominaga-Wada R, Wada T, Kondou Y, Muto Y, Matsui M, and Sugimoto K.
   "The trihelix transcription factor AtGTL1 controls ploidy-dependent cell growth in the Arabidopsis trichome"
   Plant Cell 21: 2307-2322 (2009)
9. Ishida T, Fujiwara S, Miura K, Stacey N, Yoshimura M, Schneider K, Adachi S, Minamisawa K, Umeda M, and Sugimoto K.
   "SUMO E3 ligase HIGH PLOIDY 2 regulates endocycle onset and meristem maintenance in Arabidopsis"
   Plant Cell 21: 2284-2297 (2009)
10. Breuer C, Stacey NJ, West CE, Zhao Y, Chory J, Tsukaya H, Azumi Y, Maxwell A, Roberts K, and Sugimoto-Shirasu K.
    "BIN4, a novel component of the plant DNA topoisomerase VI complex, is required for endoreduplication in Arabidopsis"
    Plant Cell 19:3655-3668 (2007)