Autophagy plays a role in plant grafting

April 18, 2025

Contributing to improved grafting techniques and understanding of tissue repair mechanisms

A joint research group of researchers from Kyoto University, Nagoya University, Meiji University, and the RIKEN CSRS has discovered that autophagy is involved in the wound healing process that occurs during plant grafting.

Grafting is an agricultural technique in which two or more plant individuals are artificially joined and cultivated as one. Although it has been practiced since ancient times, many aspects of the process remain unclear.

The research group demonstrated that, during the wound healing process, cells particularly on the upper part of the cut surface undergo autophagic degradation, which promotes the formation of new callus tissue and thereby facilitates graft establishment. This study has helped to elucidate part of the physiological processes involved in grafting and wound healing in plants, which is expected to advance our understanding of plant wound responses and lead to further applications of grafting in agriculture.

 

Original article

Nature Communications doi: 10.1038/s41467-025-58519-6

K. Kurotani, D. Shinozaki, K. Okada, R. Tabata, Y. Kawakatsu, R. Sugita, Y. Utsugi, K. Okayasu, M. Mori, K. Tanoi, Y. Goto, M. Sato, K. Toyooka, K. Yoshimoto, M. Notaguchi,

"Autophagy is induced during plant grafting to promote wound healing".

Contact

Kiminori Toyooka
Senior Technical Scientist
Mass Spectrometry and Microscopy Unit