ATACseq samples of Arabidopsis thaliana regenerating root at different time points.

Wounding is a trigger for both regeneration and defense in plants, but it is not clear if the two responses are linked by common activation or represent potential tradeoffs. While plant glutamate-like receptors (GLRs) are known to mediate defense responses, we implicate GLRs in regeneration through dynamic changes in chromatin and transcription in reprogramming cells near wound sites. Here, we show that genetic mutation and pharmacological inhibition of GLRs increases regeneration efficiency in multiple organ repair systems and plant species. Perturbation of GLR-mediated function, possibly by affecting Calcium fluxes, speeds cell division and re-specification of the stem cell niche while dampening a subset of defense responses. We show that the GLRs work through salicylic acid (SA) signaling in their effects on regeneration, with mutants in the SA receptor NPR1 partially resistant to GLR perturbation and hyper regenerative. These findings reveal a conserved mechanism that regulates a tradeoff between defense and regeneration and also offer new strategies to improve regeneration in agricultural and conservation.