Cell differentiation is an essential and necessary step for the development of the various structures and organs that make up multicellular organisms. However, despite its importance, very little is known about the molecular mechanisms underlying the activation of cell differentiation. Recently, the characterization of the binary switch MINIYO/RIMA in Arabidopsis and its ortholog in animals has provided initial insight into how this fundamental developmental process is activated and opens up the possibility of exploring whether the mechanisms of cell differentiation have been evolutionarily conserved in plants.

Our group’s research focuses on understanding, at the molecular and cellular levels, how these mechanisms have evolved using the liverwort Marchantia polymorpha as a model system, as its low genetic redundancy, phylogenetic position, and the availability of molecular tools make it ideal for this approach.

The ultimate goal of these comparative studies is to identify key factors, common across different organisms, responsible for triggering cell differentiation for future biotechnological applications.

Discovering how and when stem cells decide to enter differentiation at the expense of maintaining pluripotency is crucial for understanding organismal development, as well as other processes such as tissue regeneration and cellular reprogramming. Therefore, comparing the function of the IYO/RIMA switch in evolutionarily distant plants such as Arabidopsis and Marchantia will help reveal conserved mechanisms involved in the initiation of differentiation in all plants, as well as novel factors and processes that may have evolved separately in different lineages.

• Delgadillo, M.O., Ruano, G., Zouhar, J., Sauer, M., Shen, J, Lazarova, A., Sanmartín, M., Faat Lai, L.T., Deng, C., Wang, P., Hussey, P.J, Sánchez-Serrano, J.J., Jiang, L., Rojo, E. (2020)
  MTV proteins unveil ER- And microtubule-associated compartments in the plant vacuolar trafficking pathway
  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS) 117(18): 9884-9895

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• Chatzopoulou, F., Sanmartin, M., Mellidou, I. Pateraki, I., Koukounaras, A., Tanou, G., Kalamaki, M.S., Veljović-Jovanović, S, Antić, T.C., Kostas, S., Tsouvaltzis, P., Grumet, R., Kanellis, A.K (2020)
  Silencing of ascorbate oxidase results in reduced growth, altered ascorbic acid levels and ripening pattern in melon fruit
  Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, 156: 291-303

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• Contreras R, Kallemi P, González-García MP, Lazarova A, Sánchez-Serrano JJ, Sanmartín M, Rojo E (2019)
  Identification of domains and factors Involved in MINIYO nuclear Import
  Frontiers in Plant Science 10:1044

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• Taurino M, Costantini S, De Domenico S, Stefanelli F, Ruano G, Delgadillo MO, Sánchez-Serrano JJ, Sanmartín M, Santino A, Rojo E (2018)
  SEIPIN proteins mediate lipid droplet biogenesis to promote pollen transmission and reduce seed dormancy
  Plant Physiology 176 (2): 1531-1546

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• Creighton, MT, Sanmartín M, Kataya A, Averkina I, Heidari B, Nemie-Feyissa D, Sánchez-Serrano JJ, Lillo C (2017)
  Light regulation of nitrate reductase by catalytic subunits of protein phosphatase 2A
  Planta 246 (4): 701-710

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• Muñoz A, Mangano S, González-García MP, Contreras R, Sauer M, De Rybel B, Weijers D, Sánchez-Serrano JJ, Sanmartín M, Rojo E (2017)
  RIMA-dependent nuclear accumulation of IYO triggers auxin-irreversible cell differentiation in Arabidopsis
  Plant Cell 29 (3):575-588

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• Scalschi L, Sanmartín M, Camañes G, Troncho P, Sánchez-Serrano JJ, García-Agustín P,Vicedo B (2015)
  Silencing of OPR3 in tomato reveals the role of OPDA in callose deposition during activation of defense responses against Botrytis cinerea
  Plant Journal 81 (2): 304-315

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• Taurino M, Abelenda JA, Río-Alvarez I, Navarro C, Vicedo B, Farmaki T, Jiménez P, García-Agustín P, López-Solanilla E, Prat S, Rojo E, Sánchez-Serrano JJ, Sanmartín M (2014)
  Jasmonates regulate cell wall composition to build an effective barrier against Dickeya dadantii infection in potato
  Plant Journal 77(3): 418-429

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• Segonzac C, Macho AP, Sanmartín M, Ntoukakis V, Sánchez-Serrano JJ, Zipfel C (2014)
  Negative control of BAK1 by protein phosphatase 2A during plant innate immunity
  EMBO Journal 17 (33):2069-2079

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