Plant Gene Expression Center, USDA/UC Berkeley, Albany, California, USA.
Curr Top Dev Biol. 2010;91:103-40. doi: 10.1016/S0070-2153(10)91004-1.
The shoot apical meristem (SAM) generates above-ground aerial organs throughout the lifespan of higher plants. In order to fulfill this function, the meristem must maintain a balance between the self-renewal of a reservoir of central stem cells and organ initiation from peripheral cells. The activity of the pluripotent stem cell population in the SAM is dynamically controlled by complex, overlapping signaling networks that include the feedback regulation of meristem maintenance genes and the signaling of plant hormones. Organ initiation likewise requires the function of multifactor gene regulatory networks, as well as instructive cues from the plant hormone auxin and reciprocal signals from the shoot meristem. Floral meristems (FMs) are products of the reproductive SAM that sustains a transient stem cell reservoir for flower formation. Regulation of FM activity involves both feedback loops shared with the SAM and floral-specific factors. Recent studies have rapidly advanced our understanding of SAM function by adopting newly developed molecular and computational techniques. These advances are becoming integrated with data from traditional molecular genetics methodologies to develop a framework for understanding the central principles of SAM function.
茎尖分生组织（SAM）在高等植物的整个生命周期中产生地上空气生器官。为了履行这一功能，分生组织必须在中央干细胞库的自我更新和从周围细胞进行器官起始之间保持平衡。SAM 中多能干细胞群体的活性受到复杂的、重叠的信号网络的动态控制，包括分生组织维持基因的反馈调节和植物激素的信号传递。器官起始同样需要多因素基因调控网络的功能，以及植物激素生长素的指导线索和来自茎尖分生组织的相互信号。花分生组织（FM）是生殖 SAM 的产物，维持着用于花形成的短暂干细胞库。FM 活性的调节既涉及与 SAM 共享的反馈回路，也涉及花特异的因子。最近的研究通过采用新开发的分子和计算技术，迅速推进了我们对 SAM 功能的理解。这些进展正在与传统分子遗传学方法学的数据相结合，以开发一个理解 SAM 功能的核心原则的框架。
