Developmental mechanisms regulating secondary growth in woody plants

Secondary growth results in the radial expansion of woody stems, and requires the coordination of tissue patterning, cell differentiation, and the maintenance of meristematic stem cells within the vascular cambium. Advances are being made towards describing molecular mechanisms that regulate these developmental processes, thanks in part to the application of new genetic technologies to forest trees, and the extension of knowledge about evolutionarily conserved mechanisms from model annuals. New studies demonstrate a central role for developmental mechanisms that involve transcriptional regulators, phytohormones and the cell wall in regulating secondary growth.