Li et al. describe the cloning and characterization of the rth6 mutant, which is defective in root hair development. The rth6 gene was mapped using a combination of BSRseq and Seq-walking. The gene is root hair specific and encodes a Cellulose synthase like D gene, which is involved in the synthesis of the secondary cell wall at the root hair shaft.
Li L., Hey S., Liu S., Liu Q., McNinch C., Hu H.C., Wen T.J., Marcon C., Paschold A., Bruce W., Schnable P.S., Hochholdinger F. (2016) Characterization of maize roothairless6 which encodes a D-type cellulose synthase and controls the switch from bulge formation to tip growth. Sci. Rep. 6, 34395; doi: 10.1038/srep34395, in press.
Read more: Scientific reports