| Summary: | <i>WUSCHEL-RELATED HOMEOBOX</i> (<i>WOX</i>) transcription factors play critical roles in cell fate determination during plant development. As the founding member of the <i>WOX</i> family, <i>WUSCHEL</i> (<i>WUS</i>) is characterized for its role in maintaining stem cell in meristem. In this study, we investigated the function of <i>Populus tomentosa WUSCHELa</i> (<i>PtoWUSa</i>) in adventitious roots (ARs) in poplar. Expression profile analysis showed that <i>PtoWUSa</i> was not only expressed in shoot apical meristem and stem, but also expressed in ARs. Ectopic expression of <i>PtoWUSa</i> in <i>Arabidopsis</i> resulted in shortened primary root, as well as agravitropism and multiple branches. Overexpression of <i>PtoWUSa</i> in poplar increased the number of ARs but decreased their length. Moreover, the AR tip and lateral root tip became larger and swollen. In addition, the expression of auxin transporter genes <i>PIN-FORMED</i> were downregulated in ARs of transgenic plant. Taken together, these results suggest that <i>PtoWUSa</i> could be involved in AR development in poplar through regulating the polar auxin transport in ARs.
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