Plant hormone receptor

Article By:

Armitage, Lynne Department of Biology, University of York, York, United Kingdom.

Leyser, Ottoline Department of Biology, University of York, York, United Kingdom.

Last reviewed:September 2021

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.900137

A protein to which a plant hormone binds, triggering a response in the target cell that expresses the receptor. The receptors that recognize plant hormones are proteins necessary for proper hormonal signaling and subsequent plant development (Fig. 1). In general, the main plant hormone classes include abscisic acid, auxin, cytokinin, gibberellin, and ethylene. All of these plant hormones are simple organic molecules that have been chemically defined. Furthermore, additional hormones, such as brassinosteroids and jasmonic acid, have been identified, and there likely are many more plant hormones, especially given the complexity of plant secondary metabolism (that is, metabolism of secondary plant products that are not necessary for survival, but that may be useful to the plant, such as pigments, scents, and flavors). Despite years of effort and detailed knowledge of the chemical structure and physiological and developmental effects of plant hormones, dissecting hormone signal transduction pathways has lagged, and plant hormone receptors have been particularly elusive. Still, advances in this area have identified typical transmembrane receptor kinases (enzymes that catalyze phosphorylation reactions) for ethylene, cytokinin, and brassinosteroids, and these kinases are similar to those known for many well-characterized signaling pathways. Unusual soluble nuclear receptors for auxin and gibberellin have been discovered as well. Because of their unconventional properties, it is perhaps not surprising that these receptors have been difficult to identify. See also: Abscisic acid; Auxin; Brassinosteroids; Cytokinins; Ethylene (plant physiology); Gibberellin; Plant development; Plant hormone; Plant metabolism; Protein

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