Root system architecture (RSA) development is a complicated process that is pivotal to processes as fundamental as the acquisition of water and nutrients, stress tolerance and anchorage in the soil. This poster presents preliminary results of a search for genes that contribute to root system architecture development in Arabidopsis thaliana. With the aid of reverse genetics, microscopic studies, molecular genetic techniques, and computer-aided phenotyping, we have identified genes—functioning in cytoskeleton polymerization/depolymerization, gravitropism, and in unknown processes—that contribute to root system architecture. The study will expand our understanding of how root systems grow and develop in plants, potentially facilitating the improvement of crop species.

Keywords: Arabidopsis thaliana, Root System Architecture (RSA), Reverse Genetics, Phenotyping, Molecular Genetics