Transcription of two gene families, SAURs and GH3, in soybean has been shown to be specifically induced by the plant hormone auxin. The SAUR mRNAs have been shown to accumulate on the lower half and disappear from the upper half of soybean hypocotyls during gravitropic curvature. The SAUR and GH3 promoters have been fused to the beta-glucuronidase (GUS) reporter gene and shown to be specifically induced by auxins in transgenic tobacco plants. Histochemical staining and quantitative GUS assays indicate that these auxin inducible promoters are activated on the lower half of transgenic tobacco stems undergoing gravitropic curvature. The auxin transport inhibitors, TIBA and NPA, block both gravitropic curvature and the activation of the auxin responsive promoters in transgenic tobacco stems. The auxin responsive elements (AuxREs) within the SAUR and GH3 promoters have been identified, and these AuxREs are likely to be the elements that are responsible for the increased expression of the SAUR and GH3 genes during gravitropism.