Sabeeha Merchant, Editor-in-Chief of The Plant Cell, recently spent a week in China meeting with Chinese scientists at SIPPE (Shanghai Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology) and FAFU (Fujian Agriculturlal and Forstry University) to learn about their research. She emphasized the power of technology on advancing discoveries in plant biology, from spectroscopies to genomics, and […]
Jamie Waese, featured first author of ePlant: Visualizing and Exploring Multiple Levels of Data for Hypothesis Generation in Plant Biology Current Position: Senior Manager, Data Visualization Lab, Department of Enterprise Advanced Analytics, TD Bank, Toronto, Canada. Education: PhD (2017) in Data Visualization and User Experience Design at University of Toronto. MFA (1995) in Motion Picture […]
James K. McCarthy, featured first author of Nitrate Reductase Knockout Uncouples Nitrate Transport from Nitrate Assimilation and Drives Repartitioning of Carbon Flux in a Model Pennate Diatom Current Position: Research Fellow, J. Craig Venter Institute, La Jolla, CA. Education: Ph. D. Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ.; BA English, Union College, Schenectady, […]
Light response research in plants has traditionally focused on the shoot, but recent studies have revealed that roots are also light responsive. Lee et al. address the why and how of root photomorphogenesis. They review three ways that light is perceived in roots: via mobile signals from the shoot, direct sensing of light by root […]
About 3000 genes are required for a plant to carry out photosynthesis. Wang et al. review the transcriptional control of these photosynthetic genes, drawing on transcriptomic and evolutionary studies to make comparisons between Arabidopsis and grasses. Photosynthesis of course starts with light, and the authors’ review starts with photoreceptors and their downstream transcription factors, focusing […]
Teale and Palme give an overview of what the last 60 years of using synthetic chemicals inhibitors of polar auxin transport has really taught us. Key among inhibitors is Naphthylphthalamic acid (NPA) that interferes with polar auxin transport and can mimic PIN gene mutant phenotypes. These inhibitors have proven to be invaluable tools and have […]
Variation is the engine of evolution, and plant breeders and geneticists have long relied on induced variation to create a population from which to select. Rodríguez-Leal et al. used CRISPR/Cas9 mutagenesis to selectively introduce variability into the promoter regions of three genes involved in tomato fruit size [including locule number (seed compartments)] and growth habit. […]
The first step in defending yourself is recognizing that you need to defend yourself. Gust et al. review the mechanisms through which plants sense danger, drawing parallels to similar mechanisms in animals. They define three categories of danger signals. Exogenous signals are “non-self” signals, such as the pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPS) or signals produced by […]
Transposable elements (TEs) compose a considerable portion of most plant genomes, and mounting evidence shows various roles of TEs in the regulation of gene expression. Some TE transcripts have been hypothesized to work as “sponges” to help fine-tune the levels of miRNAs through complementary binding. Though the miRNA sponge model is supported by TE overexpression […]