The root system is fundamental for maize growth and yield.
Characterizing its heterogeneity and cell type-specific response to
nitrate at the single-cell level will shed light on root development
andnutrient uptake
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We profiled thetranscriptomes
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>7000 cells derived fromroot tips
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maize seedlings grown on media with or without nitrate, and identified
11 major cell types or tissues and 85 cell type-specific
nitrate-response genes, including several known nitrate metabolic genes.

A pseudotime analysis showed a continuous pseudotime series with the
beginning at meristematic zone cells and showed that theroot hair
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was derived by differentiation of a subset of epidermal cells.

Interspecies comparison of root cells between maize and rice revealed
the conservation and divergence of the root cell types and identified
57, 216, and 80 conserved orthologous genes in root hair,endodermis
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andphloem
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respectively.

 This study provides a global view of maize root tip developmental
processes and responses to nitrate at the single-cell level. The genes
described in the present work could serve as targets for further genetic
analyses and accurate regulation of gene expression andphenotypic
variation
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specific cell types or tissues.

Single-cell RNA sequencing reveals the landscape of maize root tips and
assists in identification of cell type-specific nitrate-response genes -
ScienceDirect
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