Arabidopsis thaliana: a small plant a big role

Abstract

Arabidopsis thaliana has been the species of choice for scientific research. Despite its lack of economic importance, it has been the focus of genetic, biochemical and physiological research worldwide. The number of published articles about arabidopsis has increased substantially after its genome was sequenced, and outgrew the number of articles related to economically important species. Despite the great number of studies involving arabidopsis, there is much disinformation about the actual role of this species in crop scientific research, as well as how the breakthroughs in arabidopsis research may help to develop more adapted and productive crops. This work aims to discuss reasons for using A. thaliana as a model species and the feasibility of this model for crop studies.