SUMMARYOrgan size is determined by cell number and size, and involves two fundamental processes: cell proliferation and cell expansion. Although several plant hormones are known to play critical roles in shaping organ size by regulating the cell cycle, it is not known whether brassinosteroids (BRs) are also involved in regulating cell division. Here we identified a rice T-DNA insertion mutant for organ size, referred to as xiao, that displays dwarfism and erect leaves, typical BR-related phenotypes, together with reduced seed setting. XIAO is predicted to encode an LRR kinase. The small stature of the xiao mutant resulted from reduced organ sizes due to decreased cell numbers resulting from reduced cell division rate, as supported by the observed coexpression of XIAO with a number of genes involved in cell cycling. The xiao mutant displayed a tissue-specific enhanced BR response and greatly reduced BR contents at the whole-plant level. These results indicated that XIAO is a regulator of BR signaling and cell division. Thus, XIAO may provide a possible connection between BRs and cell-cycle regulation in controlling organ growth.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.