Living organisms are subject to fluctuating environmental conditions. Whereas most animals are able to move away from unfavourable conditions, plants are sessile and so must cope with whatever comes their way. Of all the environmental cues that challenge the developing plant, light can probably be considered to be the most important. In addition to its key role in plant metabolism, and hence almost all life on Earth, where it drives the process of photosynthesis, light energy also acts to regulate plant growth and development. Light quantity, quality, direction and diurnal and seasonal duration regulate processes from germination, through seedling establishment to the architecture of the mature plant and the transition to reproductive development. These developmental responses of plants to light constitute photomorphogenesis. This volume is designed to provide the reader with state-of-the-art accounts of our current knowledge of the major classes of higher plant regulatory photoreceptors and the signal transduction networks that comprise plant developmental photobiology. Consideration is also given to the ways in which knowledge of plant photoreceptors and their signalling networks can be exploited, for instance to improve the quality and productivity of commercially-grown plants. The book is directed at researchers and professionals working in plant molecular biology, plant physiology and plant biochemistry.

The formation, dispersal and germination of seeds are crucial stages in the life cycles of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants. The unique properties of seeds, particularly their tolerance to desiccation, their mobility, and their ability to schedule their germination to coincide with times when environmental conditions are favorable to their survival as seedlings, have no doubt contributed significantly to the success of seed-bearing plants. Humans are also dependent upon seeds, which constitute the majority of the world’s staple foods (e.g., cereals and legumes). Seeds are an excellent system for studying fundamental developmental processes in plant biology, as they develop from a single fertilized zygote into an embryo and endosperm, in association with the surrounding maternal tissues. As genetic and molecular approaches have become increasingly powerful tools for biological research, seeds have become an attractive system in which to study a wide array of metabolic processes and regulatory systems. Seed Development, Dormancy and Germination provides a comprehensive overview of seed biology from the point of view of the developmental and regulatory processes that are involved in the transition from a developing seed through dormancy and into germination and seedling growth. It examines the complexity of the environmental, physiological, molecular and genetic interactions that occur through the life cycle of seeds, along with the concepts and approaches used to analyze seed dormancy and germination behavior. It also identifies the current challenges and remaining questions for future research. The book is directed at plant developmental biologists, geneticists, plant breeders, seed biologists and graduate students.

Annual Plant Reviews, Volume 12 A fundamental feature of developmental biology is that of theestablishment of polarity. It can be described at different levels- polarity of the organism, polarity in tissue patterning and organdevelopment, and polarity of the cell. This volume provides an account of current research into themechanisms by which polarity is generated at the level of the cell,organ and organism in plants, drawing especially on recent workwith model organisms.The emphasis is on the use of the techniquesof molecular genetics to dissect molecular mechanisms. This is the first volume to bring together the diverse aspects ofpolarity in plant development. It is directed at researchers andprofessionals in plant developmental biology, cell biology andmolecular biology. Visit www.blackwellplantsci.com the plant science site fromBlackwell Publishing.

Annual Plant Reviews, Volume 13 Plastids are essential plant organelles, vital for life on earth. They are important not just as photosynthetic organelles (chloroplasts) but also as sites involved in many fundamental intermediary metabolic pathways. Over the last decade, plastid research has seen tremendous advances and an exciting new picture is emerging of how plastids develop and function inside plant cells. The recent and rapid progress in the field has been due largely to reverse genetic approaches and forward genetic screening programs, which have resulted in the dissection of numerous chloroplast protein-function relationships. This book provides an overview of the current state of the art. It is directed at researchers and professionals in plant physiology, cell biology, genetics, molecular biology and biochemistry.

The flowering plants now dominate the terrestrial ecosystems of theplanet, and there are good reasons for supposing that the floweritself has been a major contributing factor to the spread of theAngiosperms. The flowers of higher plants not only contain theorgans of plant reproduction but are of fundamental importance ingiving rise to fruits and seeds which constitute a major componentof the human diet. This volume opens with a chapter describing a model for theevolution of the Angiosperm flower. Chapters 2 to 5 describe thecore development of the flower and include floral induction, floralpattering and organ initiation, floral shape and size, andinflorescence architecture. Chapters 6 to 8 focus on morespecialised aspects of floral development: monoecy, cytoplasmicmale sterility and flowering in perennials. Chapters 9 and 10address more functional aspects: flower colour and scent. The bookconcludes, appropriately, with a chapter on flowersenescence. Applied aspects are stressed wherever appropriate, and the book isdirected at researchers and professionals in plant genetics,developmental and molecular biology. The volume has been designed to complement an earlier volume in ourAnnual Plant Reviews series, O'Neill, S. D. and Roberts, J. A.(2002) Plant Reproduction.

The cell cycle in plants consists of an ordered set of events, including DNA replication and mitosis, that culminates in cell division. As cell division is a fundamental part of a plant’s existence and the basis for tissue repair, development and growth, a full understanding of all aspects of this process is of pivotal importance. Cell Cycle Control and Plant Development commences with an introductory chapter and is broadly divided into two parts. Part 1 details the basic cell machinery, with chapters covering cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs), cyclins, CDK inhibitors, proteolysis, CDK phosphorylation, and E2F/DP transcription factors. Part 2, which describes the cell cycle and plant development, covers cell cycle activation, cell cycle control during leaf development, endoreduplication, the cell cycle and trichome, fruit and endosperm development, the hormonal control of cell division and environmental stress, and cell cycle exit. The editor of this important book, Professor Dirk Inzé, well known and respected internationally, has brought together an impressive team of contributing authors, providing an excellent new volume in Blackwell Publishing’s Annual Plant Reviews Series. The book is an essential purchase for research teams working in the areas of plant sciences and molecular, cell and developmental biology. All libraries in universities and research establishments where biological sciences are studied and taught should have copies of this essential and timely volume.

Annual Plant Reviews, Volume 17 Conventionally, architecture relates to buildings, embracing both art and science, and specifying both form and function. In scope, this closely matches the study of plant architecture. From an artistic perspective, we might marvel at the astonishing diversity of aesthetically pleasing plant structures, yet as scientists we know that, through natural selection, very little of form is dissociated from function. The origins of studies of plant architecture and their influences on human existence are steeped in history, but, from a twenty-first century perspective, the field has been transformed from a discipline of observation and description into one in which complex networks of genetic, chemical and environmental factors can be directly manipulated and modelled. Arguably, manipulation of plant architecture has been one of the greatest mainstays of plant improvement - perhaps second only to the discoveries of the nutritional requirements of plants. With the advent of the 'gene revolution', there are countless new opportunities for selective modification of plant architecture. This book provides a broad coverage of our current understanding of plant architecture and its manipulation, ranging from the architecture of the individual cell to that of the whole plant. It is directed at researchers and professionals in plant physiology, developmental biology, molecular biology, genetics and biotechnology.