By Sabeeha S. Merchant, Nancy A. Eckardt and Nancy Winchester As Bob Goldberg, founding editor, noted upon the 20th anniversary of The Plant Cell in 2009 (Vol. 21, pp. 3–12), 1989 was a year of major change: not just for the world (“the Iron Curtain came down, the Berlin Wall crumbled, the Cold War ended…”), […]
Lee et al. identify a protein involved in pollen aperture development and the formation of distinct membrane domains in microspores. https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.18.00442 By Byung Ha Lee and Anna Dobritsa Background: Pollen grains are famous for their ability to develop various intricate patterns on their surfaces. One type of patterns common to the pollen grains of most plant […]
Li et al. demonstrate that APE2 and the DNA 3′ phosphatase ZDP play overlapping roles in active DNA demethylation in Arabidopsis thaliana. The Plant Cell (2018). By Jinchao Li and Weiqiang Qian Background: DNA methylation, the addition of a methyl group to the C-5 position of cytosine, is a type of DNA modification important for […]
Srivastava et al. identify a mechanism for rapid regulation of jasmonic acid signaling. Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.18.00036 Background: The sessile nature of plants dictates that growth must be integrated with changes in the natural environment. Modulation of hormone signalling pathways plays a key role in this process. Jasmonic acid (JA) regulates a wide spectrum of plant […]
Ganesan et al. investigate protein import into chloroplasts The Plant Cell (2018). By Iniyan Ganesan and Steven Theg Background: Chloroplasts are the green compartment in plant cells that carry out photosynthesis. Most plant proteins are made in the cytoplasm and many need to cross different cell membranes to reach their final cellular destination. Chloroplasts are […]
Huysmans et al. identify cell death regulatory proteins in root cap cells. Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.18.00293 Background: Some plants, such as giant sequoia trees, can grow into the “Largest Living Things on Earth.” Ironically, most of a tree’s biomass is actually not alive but is formed by persistent cell corpses called wood. Wood formation ends in […]
Bahaji et al. identify an important player determining seed yield in Arabidopsis. https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.18.00312 Background: Oilseeds are major sources of calories for human consumption and have a significant agricultural and industrial value. Seed number and weight are the two main components of seed yield. In plants, plastidial isoprenoid derived hormones (e.g. cytokinins [CKs] and gibberellins [GAs]) […]
Morel et al. study the nectar-producing organs in flowers and identify major regulators of nectary size https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.18.00425 By Patrice Morel and Michiel Vandenbussche Background: Nectaries are the organs that produce nectar, a sugary substance that motivates pollinators such as insects to visit flowers and subsequently pollinate them, thus ensuring the plant’s reproductive success. During evolution, […]
Kretzschmar et al. study the proteome of lipid droplets and identify a protein that functions in protein degradation during germination https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.18.00276 Background: Lipid droplets (LDs) are structures inside cells that store oil or fat, for example, in oil seeds. They were once considered plain storage organelles. Ongoing research in yeast and animal systems, however, has […]