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A research group led by Technical Staff Member Emi Yumoto and Professor Masashi Asahina has elucidated the molecular mechanism that supports the continuous growth of plants.Utsunomiya Campus

A research group led by Emi Yumoto, technical staff member at the Teikyo University Advanced Instrumentation Analysis Center, and Masashi Asahina, Professor at the Center and the Environment and Biotechnology Course, Department of Integrated Science and Engineering Science and Faculty of Science and Engineering, Teikyo University, has revealed that plant stem cells produce hormones that promote differentiation, but that they themselves are not affected by these hormones and have a mechanism for forming meristems that promote organ formation in the surrounding area, providing the basis for the plant's continuous growth. This discovery sheds light on the ingenious developmental strategies of plants and part of the evolution that led to the prosperity of land plants, and is expected to lead to the development of technologies that can freely control the size and shape of plants.
In addition, the results of this research were published in the online edition of the international scientific journal Current Biology, published by Elsevier, on December 6, 2025 (Japan time).

Press release here
For more information about Professor Asahina, click here

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