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Science 335 (6072): 1092-1096

Copyright © 2012 by the American Association for the Advancement of Science

Generation of Leaf Shape Through Early Patterns of Growth and Tissue Polarity

Erika E. Kuchen,1,* Samantha Fox,1,* Pierre Barbier de Reuille,2 Richard Kennaway,2 Sandra Bensmihen,1 Jerome Avondo,1 Grant M. Calder,1 Paul Southam,2 Sarah Robinson,1 Andrew Bangham,2,{dagger} Enrico Coen1,{dagger}

Abstract: A major challenge in biology is to understand how buds comprising a few cells can give rise to complex plant and animal appendages like leaves or limbs. We address this problem through a combination of time-lapse imaging, clonal analysis, and computational modeling. We arrive at a model that shows how leaf shape can arise through feedback between early patterns of oriented growth and tissue deformation. Experimental tests through partial leaf ablation support this model and allow reevaluation of previous experimental studies. Our model allows a range of observed leaf shapes to be generated and predicts observed clone patterns in different species. Thus, our experimentally validated model may underlie the development and evolution of diverse organ shapes.

1 John Innes Centre, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, NR4 7UH, UK.
2 School of Computing Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, UK.

* These authors contributed equally to this work.

{dagger} To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: enrico.coen{at}jic.ac.uk (E.C.); a.bangham{at}uea.ac.uk (A.B.)

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