Towards a hierarchical gene regulatory network underlying somatic embryogenesis

Chromatin status influences cellular competence for somatic embryogenesis. Auxin induces the acquisition of totipotency through altering chromatin accessibility and the transcriptome. The LEC2–WOX2/3 axis serves as a molecular link between totipotency-related transcription factor genes and early embryonic development pathway. Genome-editing technologies have advanced in recent years but designing future crops remains limited by current methods of improving somatic embryogenesis (SE) capacity. In this Opinion, we provide an update on the molecular event by which the phytohormone auxin promotes the acquisition of plant cell totipotency through evoking massive changes in transcriptome and chromatin accessibility. We propose that the chromatin states and individual totipotency-related transcription factors (TFs) from disparate gene families organize into a hierarchical gene regulatory network underlying SE. We conclude with a discussion of the practical paths to probe the cellular origin of the somatic embryo and the epigenetic landscape of the totipotent cell state in the era of single-cell genomics. Genome-editing technologies have advanced in recent years but designing future crops remains limited by current methods of improving somatic embryogenesis (SE) capacity. In this Opinion, we provide an update on the molecular event by which the phytohormone auxin promotes the acquisition of plant cell totipotency through evoking massive changes in transcriptome and chromatin accessibility. We propose that the chromatin states and individual totipotency-related transcription factors (TFs) from disparate gene families organize into a hierarchical gene regulatory network underlying SE. We conclude with a discussion of the practical paths to probe the cellular origin of the somatic embryo and the epigenetic landscape of the totipotent cell state in the era of single-cell genomics. an isoprenoid plant hormone that functions in many aspects of plant growth, development, and stress responses. one of the phytohormones that play critical roles in plant development and regeneration. 2,4-D is a synthetic auxin. usually refers to the regression of a differentiated cell to the totipotent or pluripotent state, resulting in cells with stem cell properties. the level of physical compaction of chromatin in the eukaryotic genome. Accessible or open regions are regarded as the genomic regions that are accessible by nuclear macromolecules. part of a plant cultured on growth media. a collection of genes that interact with each other to control gene expression levels, which in turn determine the function of a cell. the phenomenon where embryos develop from plant cells in the absence of fertilization. the technologies that allow the dissection of gene expression at single-cell resolution. the phenomenon where embryos are derived from differentiated somatic cells instead of zygotes. the ability of a single cell to divide and develop into a complete organism.