Transcriptome dynamics of the stomatal lineage: birth, amplification and termination of a self-renewing population

Developmental transitions can be described in terms of morphology and the roles of individual genes, but also in terms of global transcriptional and epigenetic changes. Temporal dissections of transcriptome changes, however, are rare for intact, developing tissues. We used RNA sequencing and microarray platforms to quantify gene expression from labeled cells isolated by Fluorescence Activated Cell Sorting to generate cell-type specific transcriptomes during development of an adult stem-cell lineage in the Arabidopsis leaf. We show regulatory modules in this early lineage link cell types that had previously been considered to be under separate control and provide evidence for recruitment of individual members of gene families for different developmental decisions. Because stomata are physiologically important and because stomatal lineage cells exhibit exemplary division, cell fate and cell signaling behaviors, this dataset serves as a valuable resource for further investigations of fundamental developmental processes.