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SUMMARY Plants are essential for human survival. Over the past three decades, work with the reference plantArabidopsis thalianahas significantly advanced plant biology research. One key event was the sequencing of its genome 25 years ago, which fostered many subsequent research technologies and datasets. Arabidopsis has been instrumental in elucidating plant‐specific aspects of biology, developing research tools, and translating findings to crop improvement. It not only serves as a model for understanding plant biology and but also biology in other fields, with discoveries in Arabidopsis also having led to applications in human health, including insights into immunity, protein degradation, and circadian rhythms. Arabidopsis research has also fostered the development of tools useful for the wider biological research community, such as optogenetic systems and auxin‐based degrons. This 4th Multinational Arabidopsis Steering Committee Roadmap outlines future directions, with emphasis on computational approaches, research support, translation to crops, conference accessibility, coordinated research efforts, climate change mitigation, sustainable production, and fundamental research. Arabidopsis will remain a nexus for discovery, innovation, and application, driving advances in both plant and human biology to the year 2030, and beyond.
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This content will become publicly available on May 9, 2026
Arabidopsis as a model for translational research
Abstract Arabidopsis thaliana is currently the most-studied plant species on earth, with an unprecedented number of genetic, genomic, and molecular resources having been generated in this plant model. In the era of translating foundational discoveries to crops and beyond, we aimed to highlight the utility and challenges of using Arabidopsis as a reference for applied plant biology research, agricultural innovation, biotechnology, and medicine. We hope that this review will inspire the next generation of plant biologists to continue leveraging Arabidopsis as a robust and convenient experimental system to address fundamental and applied questions in biology. We aim to encourage laboratory and field scientists alike to take advantage of the vast Arabidopsis datasets, annotations, germplasm, constructs, methods, and molecular and computational tools in our pursuit to advance understanding of plant biology and help feed the world's growing population. We envision that the power of Arabidopsis-inspired biotechnologies and foundational discoveries will continue to fuel the development of resilient, high-yielding, nutritious plants for the betterment of plant and animal health and greater environmental sustainability.
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- PAR ID:
- 10534882
- Publisher / Repository:
- American Society of Plant Biologists
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- The Plant Cell
- ISSN:
- 1040-4651
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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