A new report (free to download) from the National Academies, edited by Gentile et al., provides insights into how undergraduate research experiences (UREs) enhance and support undergraduate education, whether they are faculty-mentored lab or field-based research or research embedded in a course. This report describes many forms of URE with recommendations for how to design […]
The current issue of Genome Biology features a collection of review and research articles on the topic of plant epigenomics, with an overview editorial by Köhler and Springer. This collection “highlights advances in our understanding of the functions of epigenetic modifications, and the application of this knowledge.” Topics include how chromatin marks contribute to stress responses […]
Sesterterpenes are a family of natural products; some (derived from corals and fungi) have been shown to have antitumor, antimicrobial and antiinflamatrory activities. Huang et al. used genome mining to identify sesterterpene biosynthetic genes in the Brassicaceae. The first committed step is carried out in fungi by a bifunctional enzyme, but by two enzymes in […]
Daurichromenic 1 acid (DCA) is a meroterpenoid with anti-HIV properties that is produced in young leaves of Rhododendron dauicum. In this study, Iijimi et al. identified a DCA synthase gene. Starting with their previous observations that this enzyme is a stereoselective meroterpenoid oxidocyclase, similar to cannabinoid synthases of Cannabis sativa, the authors looked in a […]
Most plants that use the more efficient C4 form of photosynthesis also exhibit Kranz anatomy, in which the PEPC and Rubisco carboxylases reside in distinct cells. Key genes that control the development of Kranz anatomy have been hard to find. In this report, Wang et al. analysed the effects of constitutively expressing in rice candidate […]
Because most chloroplast proteins are encoded in the nuclear genome, there must be ways for signals from the chloroplast to inform the nucleus and direct changes in gene expression. Several candidates have been proposed as chloroplast-to-nucleus (retrograde) signals. Using hydrogen-peroxide (H2O2) specific sensors, Exposito-Rodriguez et al. show that upon illumination with high light, hydrogen peroxide […]
Following double fertilization, the embryo and the endosperm form within a developing seed. In Arabidopsis, the endosperm is somewhat transient, as most of the space it occupies is eventually taken over by the embryo. The question of how the embryo pushes aside the endosperm has not been fully clear. Previous studies showed that the surface […]
Chilling to 4° induces cell death in a subset of cells at the Arabidopsis root tip, the CSCDs (columella stem cell daughters, located just distal to the quiescent center). Hong et al. show that this cell death is dependent on cell division and that it is an active, programmed response. Blocking this cell death renders […]
Plants can emit up to 10% of the carbon they fix as volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which function in abiotic stress tolerance, pollinator attraction, signalling between plants, and defending against pathogens and herbivores. It has been an open question whether these small molecules pass directly and passively through the plasma membrane or whether their transport […]