Roles of TCP Transcription Factors in Plant Growth and Development

ABSTRACT During plant evolution, several unique developmental processes have developed in response to growth and developmental needs. These processes may be related to the evolution of a family of plant‐specific proteins, the Teosinte branched 1/Cycloidea/Proliferating cell factor (TCP) family, which originated in eukaryotes and has been expanding in plant evolution. In the last two decades, important breakthroughs have been made in the study of the biological functions of members of this family. Although all TCP proteins contain highly conserved DNA‐binding domains, their biological functions are diverse. A large number of studies have shown that TCP transcription factors play regulatory roles by mediating complex signaling networks, which provide new perspectives for analyzing the regulatory mechanisms of plant development. In this review, the upstream regulatory networks, molecular components and target gene regulatory mechanisms of TCP transcription factors are discussed, and the core role of this protein family in plant growth and development is emphasized. In addition, we point out the insufficient integration and analysis in the current study, which will provide a theoretical basis for future multi‐dimensional systematic research.