A molecular communications framework for understanding the floral transition

Abstract

With no option to run away, plants' survival builds on their capacity to respond to challenges from their environment. Plants monitor their surroundings and plastically adjust their metabolism, growth and development to acclimatise and defend themselves [1]. In particular, the timing of events such as germination, flowering, pollination and seed development are key adaptive traits [2, 3]. Plants go to great lengths to get the timing of these developmental transitions coordinated with their environmental conditions [4].