Seed germination and early seedling development are two critical phases in plant lifecycle that largely determine crop yield. Phytohormones play an essential role in governing these developmental processes; of these, ethylene (ET; C2H4), the smallest gaseous hormone, plays a major role via crosstalk with other hormones. Typically, the mechanism of hormone (for instance, auxin, cytokinins, ET, and gibberellins) action is determined by cellular context, revealing either synergistic or antagonistic relations. Significant progress has been made, so far, on unveiling ET crosstalk with other hormones and environmental signals, such as light. In particular, stimulatory and inhibitory effects of ET on hypocotyl growth in light and dark, respectively, and its interaction with other hormones provide an ideal model to study the growth-regulatory pathways. In this review, we aim at exploring the mechanisms of multifarious phenomena that occur via ET crosstalk during the germination of seeds (overcoming dormancy), and all through the development of seedlings. Understanding the remarkably complex mechanism of ET crosstalk that emerges from the interaction between hormones and other molecular players to modulate plant growth, remains a challenge in plant developmental biology.

中文翻译：

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乙烯串扰在种子发芽和幼苗早期发育中的作用：综述。

种子发芽和幼苗早期发育是植物生命周期中的两个关键阶段，在很大程度上决定着作物的产量。植物激素在控制这些发育过程中起着至关重要的作用。其中，最小的气态激素乙烯（ET; C2H4）通过与其他激素的串扰发挥重要作用。通常，激素（例如生长素，细胞分裂素，ET和赤霉素）的作用机理取决于细胞环境，从而揭示了协同关系或拮抗关系。迄今为止，在揭开与其他激素和环境信号（例如光）的ET串扰方面取得了重大进展。特别是，ET分别对明暗环境下胚轴生长的刺激和抑制作用，以及其与其他激素的相互作用为研究生长调节途径提供了理想的模型。在这篇综述中，我们旨在探讨在种子发芽（克服休眠）过程中以及通过幼苗发育过程中通过ET串扰发生的多种现象的机制。理解ET串扰的异常复杂机制是由于激素与其他分子参与方之间的相互作用来调节植物生长而产生的，这仍然是植物发育生物学中的一个挑战。