Question

Meristem identity genes within plants:

Encode for chitin

Cause cells to differentiate

Are expressed in xylem cells

Maintain cell totipotency

Answer 1

Meristem identity genes within plant maintain cell totipotency.

Explanation -- Totipotency is the ability of the individual cell to divide and produce all differentiated cells in an organism.

A meristem is a tissue in plants that consists of undifferentiated cells capable of cell division. Meristems give rise to various tissues and organs of a plant and are responsible for growth.

Meristem identity genes confer floral identity on the peripheral zone cells that give rise to primordia, so that they produce flowers rather than vegetative structures.The major floral meristem identity genes are Leafy (LFY) and APETELA1 (AP1).LFY results in conversion of the shoot apical meristem and lateral meristems into flowers, and causes early flowering when the transgenic plants are grown either in long or short days.

These genes are expressed in the floral or leaf primordia.

since, these genes have potential to grow into flower from stem that means they maintain the cells ability to be differntated into the required structure (ie maintaining totipotency of cell)

*chitin is an exoskeleton protein which is present in animal cell and not in plant cell.