Recent advances in peptide signaling during Arabidopsis root development.

Roots provide the plant with water and nutrients and anchor plants in a substrate. Root development is controlled by plant hormones and various sets of transcription factors. Recently, various small peptides and their cognate receptors have been identified to control root development. Small peptides bind to membrane-localized receptor-like kinases, inducing their dimerization with coreceptor proteins for signaling activation and giving rise to cellular signaling outputs. Small peptides function as local and long-distance signaling molecules involved in cell-to-cell communication networks, coordinating root development. In this review, we survey recent advances in the peptide ligand-mediated signaling pathways involved in the control of root development in Arabidopsis thaliana. We describe the interconnection between peptide signaling and conventional phytohormone signaling. Additionally, we discuss diversities of identified peptide-receptor interactions during plant root development.