“If the current trend continues, there could be more plastic than fish by weight in the oceans by 2050” writes MacArthur in her Editorial, “Beyond plastic waste” (10.1126/science.aao6749). In three Perspective articles, challenges and opportunities to reduce plastic waste and improve its production are discussed. Hillmyer describes progress in developing plant-based plastics in “The promise […]
Pollen tubes exhibit unidirectional, polar growth because vesicles carrying compounds required for growth are selectively transported to the growing apex. The phosphoinositide PtdIns(4,5)P2 accumulates at the apex and is thought to help with vesicle targeting. Helpel et al. showed that the lipid kinase responsible for PtdIns(4,5)P2 production, PIP5K6, is phosphorylated by incubation with extracts from […]
Previously, the authors identified an Arabidopsis mutant that shows resistance to a widespread oomycete pathogen. In this new work, Wang et al. identified the Phytophthora sojae susceptible gene locus, PSS1, which encodes a plasma-membrane localized glycine-rich protein. When introduced into soybean plants, PSS1 confers enhanced resistance to the fungal pathogen Fusarium virguliforme, causal agent of […]
The plant immune system is often described as having two parts, one which recognizes extracellular conserved microbial signals (pattern-triggered immunity: PTI) and one which is stimulated by the presence of specific microbial effectors (effector-triggered immunity: ETI). Through a forward-genetic screen, Mang et al. identified a pair of receptor-like kinases ANX1 and ANX2 that are negative […]
Review. Genomic selection in plant breeding: Methods, models, and perspectives In future years, climate change may cause significant economic losses to countries worldwide. Consequently, genetic improvement of crops fit for drought-stressed and semi-arid regions is becoming a must. In this review, Crossa et al. assess the advances in genetic selection (GS) and genomic-enabled prediction (GP) […]
By Jozef Samaj, George Komis, Dominik Novak, Miroslav Ovecka, Olga Samajova Abstract After the establishment of advanced fluorescence microscopy methods and the development of numerous fluorescent proteins it is possible to follow the organization and dynamics of most organelles and subcellular compartments in cells of living plants. Nowadays, it is possible to address subcellular architecture […]
How does a flat leaf form? Previous studies have indicated that the formation of a flattened blade depends upon a boundary layer between the upper and lower cell layers, and that mobile small RNAs contribute to this boundary, but how this occurs is not fully resolved. For example, although the small RNA tasiRNA is present […]
All cells need iron (Fe), which is frequently limiting for life. Plants (like other organisms) have complex strategies for uptake of Fe from their environment. Studies in the green alga Chlamodomonas have demonstrated that these organisms are able to prioritize certain pathways when Fe is limiting, a process called “Fe sparing”. Hantzis et al. used […]
A special “thank you” too the many people who have contributed to What We’re Reading over the past year! And don’t forget you can sign up to receive email alerts – click here then “Notify me of new content”. Review: Plant systems biology at the single-cell level The establishment and enormous developments in -omics and […]