Aphids are highly destructive insect pests—in addition to robbing plants of sugar-rich phloem sap, they carry viruses that can be deadly to the plant. To reach the phloem sap, aphids must penetrate the plasma membrane of sieve elements. Mature sieve elements, which are virtually empty, translocate carbohydrates and signaling molecules, such as RNAs and soluble […]
Folates are soluble B9 vitamins with essential functions in all kingdoms of life—both in organisms that produce these vitamins de novo (fungi, plants, and most microorganisms) and in those that do not (animals). As essential cofactors in one-carbon transfers, different folate species mediate the biosynthesis of multiple biomolecules, including nucleic acids, amino acids, and lipids. […]
Systemic acquired resistance (SAR)—a plant-wide heightened state of defense following localized exposure to a pathogen—is characterized by increased salicylic acid (SA) and ROS levels and elevated expression of pathogenesis-related genes. SAR depends on ENHANCED DISEASE SUSCEPTIBILITY1 (EDS1), which both generates the SAR signal at the primary infection site and perceives it in distal, uninfected tissues […]
Soon after dicots germinate, the hypocotyl arches into a hook-like structure that protects the shoot apical meristem as the seedling grows through the soil. Once the seedling emerges from the ground and senses light, the hypocotyl straightens. The asymmetric growth that results in apical hook formation depends on an auxin gradient; auxin response maxima in […]