Fig. 7

Induction of WOX and LBD genes by wind-mediated mechanical stimulation. Following stimulation by wind and artificial falling down, the first leaf nodes and their internodes were harvested for total RNA extraction, and transcript levels were analyzed by RT-qPCR. Biological triplicates, each consisting of 15 plants, were statistically analyzed (t-test, *P < 0.01). Error bars indicate SE. a, b Transcription of WOX and LBD genes. Three-week-old plants grown in soil were exposed to either a constant wind flow (a) or artificially fallen down (b) for 6 h. c, d Transcription of ethylene response genes. The plants treated with either wind flow (c) or falling down (d) for 6 h were used. e Schematic model of auxin-mediated AR formation under wind-induced lodging stress conditions. In response to wind flow, plants falls down, imposing a mechanical stimuli on the leaf nodes. The mechanical stimulation would induce the auxin-dependent expression of WOX and LBD genes. We propose that the WOX/LBD-mediated auxin signals trigger the initiation and development of ARs, leading to plant adaptation to lodging stress