Entries by Suresh Damodaran

The ectomycorrhizal fungus Laccaria bicolor produces lipochitooligosaccharides and uses the common symbiosis pathway ($) (Plant Cell)

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Nutrient exchange during plant-fungal symbiosis allows assimilation of nutrients necessary for plant growth in a beneficial way. Several plants have evolved to form symbioses with mycorrhizal fungi and rhizobia bacteria that allow the plants to efficiently take up nitrogen and phosphorous. In its interactions with mycorrhizal fungi, the plant secretes strigolactones (hormones) that are perceived […]

A positive feedback loop of LHW-TMO5 and local auxin biosynthesis in vascular development ($) (Plant Cell Physiol)

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Proper development of root vascular tissue is necessary for plant growth, as these tissues are responsible for nutrient and water uptake. Multiple key players including transcriptional factors (TF) and hormones are involved in vascular development. In this paper Ohashi-Ito et al. have identified a feedback loop mechanism involving the heterodimer complex LHW (LONESOME HIGHWAY, a […]

Manganese deficiency affects root endodermal suberization and ion homeostasis (Plant Physiol.)

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Manganese (Mn) is an essential plant nutrient necessary for multiple plant process such as photosynthesis. Mn deficiency has a significant impact on crop production particularly in cereals including barley (Hordeum vulgare L.). Chen et al. identified how Mn deficiency alters suberin deposition in the  barley root endodermis. The suberin lamellae in the root endodermis provide […]

TurboID-based proximity labeling reveals that UBR7 is a regulator of N NLR immune receptor-mediated immunity (Nature Comms)

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Identification of protein- protein interactions helps understand the signaling cascade in multiple biological process including development, biotic and abiotic stress. Previously, a proximity-based labelling approach referred to as BioID had been used to identify proteins in close proximity to a protein of interest by labelling them with biotin. In this paper, Zhang et al. optimized […]

Cell cycle dependent regulation and function of ARGONAUTE1 in plants (Plant Cell) ($)

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Regulation of gene expression at transcriptional, translational and post-translation levels is crucial for proper plant growth. Post-transcriptional gene regulation by small RNAs like microRNA (miRNA), siRNA and phasi-RNAs is necessary for meristem maintenance in plants. Unlike in the mammalian system, the role of small RNAs during the cell cycle in meristematic tissue is unknown. In […]

ABCB21 regulates auxin levels in cotyledons, pericycle and leaves (Frontiers Plant Science)

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Auxin activity is maintained through regulated biosynthesis, metabolism and transport. In this paper Jenness et al. characterized the physiological significance of a known IAA transporter, ABCB21 (ATP BINDING CASSETTE TRANSPORTER subfamily B member 21) in Arabidopsis. ABCB21 transports shoot derived auxin in the rootward direction, and a transcriptional fusion of ABCB21 regulatory elements fused to […]

An Improved plant toolset for high-throughput recombineering (BioRxiv)

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To determine the role of any gene of interest it is necessary to understand the spatiotemporal expression pattern. This is accomplished by tagging the regulatory sequence(s) alone (transcriptional fusion) or regulatory sequence(s) with the coding region (translational fusion) of the gene of interest. In this paper Brumos et al., have developed a recombineering based gene […]

Sphingolipid biosynthesis modulates plasmodesmal ultrastructure and phloem unloading (Nature Plants)

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Regulated transport of molecules from source to sink is essential for providing necessary molecules including photoassimilates to the required tissue. This mechanism is crucial for development and plant growth in response to stimuli and it occurs through plasmodesmata. In a previous report, CALLOSE SYNTHASE 3 (CALS3) was identified to be necessary for the permeability of […]

Evolution of vascular plants through redeployment of ancient developmental regulators (bioRxiv)

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Land plants (Tracheophytes), utilize the well-developed vascular tissue for conducting water and other nutrients necessary for plant growth. In Arabidopsis and other land plants, the key player of vascular cell division is well characterized and this includes the TMO5-LHW (TARGET OF MONOPTEROS 5 – LONESOME HIGHWAY) heterodimerization, downstream of auxin signaling. Loss of either one […]