Editorial: Root development: towards understanding regulatory networks and complex interactions between cell populations

The root system architecture is pivotal for soil exploration and plant adaptation and survival. For this reason, the genetic control of root development (reviewed, e.g., in Bennett and Scheres, 2010; Slovak et al., 2016) is under enormous selection pressure at various scales, from tissue patterning to branching of the below-ground root system, which can be even more extensive than the above-ground shoot system. Various aspects of root development are discussed in this collection, including the role of hormonal cross-talk in root development in general, as well as auxin, peptide hormones, ROS homeostasis and cell-wall proteins, in particular. Also, traits of the root system architecture and differences in ground tissue patterning between species are discussed, among other subjects.