Dear Colleagues,

The stem cell niche in plants is called a meristem, an organ composed of several distinct regions. In the shoot apical meristem (SAM) of dicots, including the model plant Arabidopsis, three distinct regions can be identified, including the central zone (that contains genuine stem cells), the peripheral zone, and the rib meristem. An elaborated interplay between these regions is central to the functionality of the meristem. Two major apical meristems, that of the root and that of the shoot, are responsible for the formation of the bulk of the above and below ground plant body. Besides primary apical meristems, plants possess secondary meristems, including intercalary meristems (most common in grasses), which are located at the internodes or the base of the leaves, and lateral meristems, such as the cambium and the phellogen that build secondary plant tissues. Meristems are thus the most important organs that drive plant growth and development. They determine the number and fate of cells, the structure and fate of tissues, the shape and type of organs, the phases of plant vegetative and sexual reproduction, and general plant architecture. Doing it in an organized, efficient, and reliable way is an extremely complicated function, crucial to the fitness of a sessile organism such as a plant.

The applications of genetic and various molecular approaches to study plant meristems have uncovered some of the molecular mechanisms underlying meristem establishment and maintenance. In this Special Issue, we wish to highlight these mechanisms and the bearing environmental signals might have on the structure and function of the meristem.

We invite papers addressing various molecular aspects of meristem (apical, intercalary, or lateral) organization, establishment, and maintenance with a focus on the effects of internal and environmental signals. We encourage papers addressing the genetics of plant meristems, the role of plant hormones in meristem structure and function, how stress shapes the meristem, and how epigenetics regulate meristem organization and function.

Prof. Dr. Simcha Lev-Yadun
Prof. Dr. Gideon Grafi
Guest Editors

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• Apical meristems
• Lateral meristems (e.g., Cambium)
• Intercalary meristems
• Differentiation
• Pattern formation
• Stem cells
• Stress responses
• Plant hormones
• Epigenetics