Phonebook Biology Links Main Menu Erin E. Irish Plant Developmental Genetics Meristems play a central role in the development of plants. Like stem cells in animals, meristems are a perpetual source of new cells.
Meristems confer the capacity for indeterminate growth of the plant.
Shoot meristems have two distinct functions, initiation of tissues and cell division. In the process of initiation, cells at the periphery of the meristem are recruited to form tissues and organs, which are displaced from the meristem, differentiate and mature. The second function, cell division, replaces the cells that are lost to the formation of tissues and organs. A small set of cells at the summit of the meristem, the apical initials, are considered to be the ultimate source of cells of the meristem. In most plants, shoot meristems eventually become determinate, losing the ability to add any more tissues or organs to that axis.