Ecker J R
Department of Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia 19104-6018, USA.
Science. 1995 May 5;268(5211):667-75. doi: 10.1126/science.7732375.
Ethylene (C2H4), the chemically simplest plant hormone, is among the best-characterized plant growth regulators. It participates in a variety of stress responses and developmental processes. Genetic studies in Arabidopsis have defined a number of genes in the ethylene signal transduction pathway. Isolation of two of these genes has revealed that plants sense this gas through a combination of proteins that resemble both prokaryotic and eukaryotic signaling proteins. Ethylene signaling components are likely conserved for responses as diverse as cell elongation, cell fate patterning in the root epidermis, and fruit ripening. Genetic manipulation of these genes will provide agriculture with new tools to prevent or modify ethylene responses in a variety of plants.
乙烯（C₂H₄）是化学结构最简单的植物激素，也是特征最为明确的植物生长调节剂之一。它参与多种应激反应和发育过程。对拟南芥的遗传学研究确定了乙烯信号转导途径中的多个基因。其中两个基因的分离表明，植物通过一组兼具原核生物和真核生物信号蛋白特征的蛋白质来感知这种气体。乙烯信号传导成分在诸如细胞伸长、根表皮细胞命运模式形成以及果实成熟等多种不同反应中可能是保守的。对这些基因进行基因操作将为农业提供新工具，以预防或改变多种植物中的乙烯反应。
