When and where plant cells divide: a perspective from computational modeling

Computational modeling of growing plant tissues raises two basic questions about plant cell division: when does a cell decide to divide and where is the new wall placed? Although biologists and modelers commonly assume that a cell divides after it reaches a threshold size, two recent experiments show that models with variable division sizes better replicate the tissue. Similarly, comparing model predictions with living plant cells reveals that the choice of division plane is variable, although the shortest path dividing a cell in half (i.e. the minimal surface area) is the most probable division plane.

► Modeling plant tissues requires us to understand plant cell division. ► A cell size threshold is not deterministic for the timing of division. ► Orientations of new cell walls are stochastic choices of one of the shortest paths. ► Developmental regulators tweak default mechanisms for specialized divisions.