Plant Physiology and Biochemistry Research Laboratory, Department of Botany, University of Kashmir, Srinagar-190006, India.
J Exp Bot. 2023 Aug 3;74(14):3961-3974. doi: 10.1093/jxb/erad217.
Flower senescence is a fundamental aspect of the developmental trajectory in flowers, occurring after the differentiation of tissues and maturation of petals, and preceding the growth and development of seeds. It is accompanied by various alterations at the cytological, physiological, and molecular levels, similar to other forms of programmed cell death (PCD). It involves an intricate interplay of various plant growth regulators, with ethylene being the key orchestrator in ethylene-dependent petal senescence. Petal senescence mediated by ethylene is marked by various changes such as petal wilting, amplified oxidative stress, degradation of proteins and nucleic acids, and autophagy. Ethylene crosstalks with other growth regulators and triggers genetic and/or epigenetic reprogramming of genes during senescence in flowers. While our understanding of the mechanism and regulation of petal senescence in ethylene-sensitive species has advanced, significant knowledge gaps still exist, which demand critical reappraisal of the available literature on the topic. A deeper understanding of the various mechanisms and regulatory pathways involved in ethylene-dependent senescence has the capacity to facilitate a more precise regulation of the timing and site of senescence, thus leading to optimized crop yields, enhanced product quality, and extended longevity.
花朵衰老过程是花朵发育轨迹中的一个基本方面，发生在组织分化和花瓣成熟之后，以及种子生长和发育之前。它伴随着细胞学、生理学和分子水平的各种变化，类似于其他形式的程序性细胞死亡（PCD）。它涉及各种植物生长调节剂的复杂相互作用，其中乙烯是乙烯依赖性花瓣衰老的关键协调因子。乙烯介导的花瓣衰老伴随着各种变化，如花瓣萎蔫、氧化应激放大、蛋白质和核酸降解以及自噬。乙烯与其他生长调节剂相互作用，并在花朵衰老过程中触发基因的遗传和/或表观遗传重编程。虽然我们对乙烯敏感物种花瓣衰老的机制和调控有了更深入的了解，但仍然存在重大的知识空白，这需要对该主题的现有文献进行批判性评估。更深入地了解乙烯依赖性衰老中涉及的各种机制和调控途径，有能力更精确地调控衰老的时间和部位，从而提高作物产量、提高产品质量和延长寿命。
