Golden Delicious apples are particularly susceptible to the fungal pathogen Alternaria alternaria f. sp. mali. Zhang et al. have traced this susceptibility to a single nucleotide in the promoter of gene encoding a hairpin RNA (hpRNA), MdhpRNA277. This hpRNA produces small RNAs that selectivey target…

Some pathogen effectors disarm a plant’s immunity directly, for example through targeting resistance genes, whereas others work indirectly, through the plants own susceptibility (S) factors. He et al. provide an example of the latter. Previously, the authors showed that the Phytophthora infestans effector…

Endophytic insects, which spend much of their life inside of plant tissues (e.g., leaf miners and gall-forming insects) are well-known for manipulating plant host physiology to their advantage, unlike free living herbivore insects whose game plan relies on their ability to move and find the most nutritious…

As we face increasingly odd weather patterns resulting from elevated CO2 emissions to the atmosphere, the question of how best to balance the need to produce food with the desire to minimize CO2 emissions becomes increasingly urgent. Williams et al. compared the effects of different types of land-use…

Review: MYBs drive novel consumer traits in fruits and vegetables The MYB transcription factors, specifically the R2R3 family of MYBs, are closely associated with the regulation of anthocyanin biosynthesis. This easy-to-score trait made MYBs some of the earliest characterized plant transcription factors.…

Held at Centre of Excellence in Molecular Biology (CEMB). July 20, 2018 Riazuddin auditorium of CEMB is a graceful building which has been built recently for the conduction of scientific and social events. A one- day Symposium on “Risk assessment of GM crops” was successfully organized…

Jianping Yu, first author of Natural Variation in OsLG3 Increases Drought Tolerance in Rice by Inducing ROS Scavenging Current Position: Postdoctoral fellow in Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China. Education: Ph. D., China Agricultural University Non-scientific…

Haiyan Xiong, first author of Natural Variation in OsLG3 Increases Drought Tolerance in Rice by Inducing ROS Scavenging Current Position: Postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Plant Science, University of Cambridge, UK. Education: Ph.D., China Agricultural University Non-scientific Interests:…