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Nodule Initiation Involves the Creation of a New Symplasmic Field in Specific Root Cells of Medicago Species

^a Institut des Sciences du Végétal–Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, 91198 Gif sur Yvette, France
^b Unit of Cell Biology, Scottish Crop Research Institute, Invergowrie, Dundee DD2 5DA, United Kingdom
^c Institute of Plant Sciences, Faculty of Agricultural, Food, and Environmental Quality Sciences, Rehovot 76100, Israel
^d Molecular Plant Physiology, University of Erlangen, D-91058 Erlangen, Germany

¹ To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail crespi{at}isv.cnrs-gif.fr; fax 331-69-82-36-95

The organogenesis of nitrogen-fixing nodules in legume plants is initiated in specific root cortical cells and regulated by long-distance signaling and carbon allocation. Here, we explore cell-to-cell communication processes that occur during nodule initiation in Medicago species and their functional relevance using a combination of fluorescent tracers, electron microscopy, and transgenic plants. Nodule initiation induced symplasmic continuity between the phloem and nodule initials. Macromolecules such as green fluorescent protein could traffic across short or long distances from the phloem into these primordial cells. The created symplasmic field was regulated throughout nodule development. Furthermore, Medicago truncatula transgenic plants expressing a viral movement protein showed increased nodulation. Hence, the establishment of this symplasmic field may be a critical element for the control of nodule organogenesis.

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