Abstract
Floral transition, transition from vegetative to reproductive growth, is one of the most important developmental events in flowering plants for reproductive success and is tightly controlled by genetic networks that integrate signals from environmental and endogenous cues. Integration of these signals culminated in the production of a long-distance signal, called florigen, in leaves. Recent functional analyses of the FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT) protein provide the molecular basis of florigen activity in the floral transition process. Here, we report the identification of a novel flowering-time gene, FE, encoding a Myb-related transcription factor. Genetic analysis revealed that fe, ft and fd mutants belong to the same physiological group and share similar genetic interactions with various flowering-related mutants. We will discuss about the current model of the FE function in the floral transition process in Arabidopsis.
