Auxins

Auxins (plural of auxin /ˈɔːksᵻn/) are a class of plant hormones (or plant growth substances) with some morphogen-like characteristics. Auxins have a cardinal role in coordination of many growth and behavioral processes in the plant's life cycle and are essential for plant body development. Auxins and their role in plant growth were first described by the Dutch scientist Frits Warmolt Went.Kenneth V. Thimann was the first to isolate one of these phytohormones and determine its chemical structure as indole-3-acetic acid (IAA). Went and Thimann co-authored a book on plant hormones, Phytohormones, in 1937.

Auxins were the first of the major plant hormones to be discovered. They derive their name from the Greek word αυξειν (auxein – "to grow/increase"). Auxin (namely IAA) is present in all parts of a plant, although in very different concentrations. The concentration in each position is crucial developmental information, so it is subject to tight regulation through both metabolism and transport. The result is the auxin creates "patterns" of auxin concentration maxima and minima in the plant body, which in turn guide further development of respective cells, and ultimately of the plant as a whole.

The (dynamic and environment responsive) pattern of auxin distribution within the plant is a key factor for plant growth, its reaction to its environment, and specifically for development of plant organs (such as leaves or flowers). It is achieved through very complex and well coordinated active transport of auxin molecules from cell to cell throughout the plant body — by the so-called polar auxin transport. Thus, a plant can (as a whole) react to external conditions and adjust to them, without requiring a nervous system. Auxins typically act in concert with, or in opposition to, other plant hormones. For example, the ratio of auxin to cytokinin in certain plant tissues determines initiation of root versus shoot buds.

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