Entries by Julia Miller

Novel energy transfer pathway between light-harvesting complexes and photosystem I core identified through structural studies ($)

Plants must regulate the harvesting of light to maintain proper energy fluxes though photosystem I (PSI) and photosystem II (PSII). Under optimal conditions, the light-harvesting complex II (LHCII) is phosphorylated and forms a supercomplex with the PSI core and the light-harvesting complex I (LHCI). This phosphorylation is due to a kinase (STN7) that senses the […]

Self Reflection – Outreach Skills. The art of explaining your science in Public

Part of the Self-Reflection; series by and for early-career researchers Outreach is defined as “any scientific communication that engages an audience outside of academia” (Varner J., BioScience, 2014). Most scientists and scientists-in-training are aware of outreach as something that is included in most grant proposals. However, outreach is more than just a few lines in a grant […]

Diverse border crops and neighboring crops aid urban agriculture (eLIFE)

As more people move to cities, urban agriculture will make larger contributions to food security. There has been little investigation on the role of plant biodiversity in urban agricultural systems. Wan and colleagues use monitoring data collected from community farms in Shanghai, China, to investigate the role of border and neighboring crops on rice production. […]

Chloroplast ATP synthase structure generated through cryo-EM ($) (Science)

Green plants use photosynthesis to covert light into ATP (adenosine triphosphate) through the molecular action of the chloroplast F1Fo ATP synthase (cF1Fo). The ATP synthesis happens in the hydrophilic head (c F1) and is powered by the cFo rotary motor located in the photosynthetic membrane. This rotary motor is driven by the electrochemical gradient maintained […]

The cytokinin trans-Zeatin plays a role in long distance nitrogen signaling ($) (Plant Cell)

Plants modify gene expression and physiological processes to overcome temporal and spatial variations in nitrogen availability. These modifications rely on complex root-shoot-root signaling networks which are triggered by cytokinin biosynthesis. Poitout and colleagues use mutant analysis, transcriptome analysis and hormone profiling to understand complex long distance nitrogen signaling networks in Arabidopsis thaliana. In the shoots, […]

Regulation of Arabidopsis hypocotyl growth by transcriptional regulators (PNAS)

The integration of light-based environmental signals with photoreceptors and transcriptional regulators is essential for coordinating plant growth, development and energy production. One such integrator of light and signaling components is the Arabidopsis thaliana TANDEM ZINC-FINGER PLUS3 (TZP). TZP is a positive regulator of hypocotyl elongation and interacts with ZINC-FINGER HOMEODOMAIN 10 (ZFHD10). Perrella and colleagues […]

Increase in monoderm bacteria in drought-delayed early sorghum root microbiomes (PNAS)

Drought stress drastically decreases crop productivity. Some root-associated bacteria have been shown to decrease the negative effects of drought stress on plants, but the role of drought in the development of the root microbiome has not been studied. Xu and colleagues use root metabolomics and 16S rRNA amplicon and metatranscriptome sequencing to elucidate the impact […]

SIAMESE-RELATED1 (SMR1) has roles in leaf growth repression under drought (OA)

The cell cycle of plants is regulated by signals that integrate endogenous and environmental cues to allow for adaptation to varying conditions. When a plant is under drought stress, cell division in young leaves is stopped by an active mechanism to conserve resources. Cyclin-dependent kinase-inhibitory proteins (CKIs) have been studied in relation to cell cycle […]