The May 2023 issue of The Plant Cell has a focus on RNA biology, and some of the articles for this issue are online now. I particularly enjoyed this multi-author perspective review by Manavella et al., in which 12 RNA biology groups from across the globe share the questions that they find most compelling…

This is an interesting paper that grabbed my attention from the very first line: “Tomatoes are the second most valuable crop in the USA”. Of course, a key trait in these important fruits is their flavor, something the Harry Klee team at the University of Florida have been studying for years. Here,…

Lately, reactive oxygen species (ROS) have been recognized as signaling molecules that regulate plant cellular proliferation and differentiation in many areas of the plant, including root tips. Chloroplasts, peroxisomes, and mitochondria are the main cellular compartments for ROS generation in cells.…

Root system architecture (RSA) is a complex trait that directly or indirectly influences most aspects of plant survival, largely through its effects on nutrient and water uptake as well as support and anchoring. Its hidden nature has made it harder to study than the architecture of the shoot, and led…

Review: The epigenetic control of the transposable element life cycle in plant genomes and beyond What a wonderful review! As the title indicates, this review by Liu et al. looks at transposons, considering their “life cycle” – from introduction into a naïve genome, through amplification, diversification,…

Zhenpeng Luo, first author of "The small peptide CEP1 and the NIN-like protein NLP1 regulate NRT2.1 to mediate root nodule formation across nitrate concentrations" Current Position: Ph. D. candidate Education: Ph.D. in Genetics, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences (CEMPS), University…

Zhen Wang, first author of "PHOSPHATE RESPONSE 1 family members act distinctly to regulate transcriptional responses to phosphate starvation" Current Position: The Open University of China, Faculty of Agriculture, Forestry and Medicine, Lecturer Education: 2015.9-2021.6, Tsinghua University,…

Yanfei Zhang, first author of “Wheat TaSnRK2.10 phosphorylates TaERD15 and TaENO1 and confers drought tolerance when overexpressed in rice” Current Position: Ph D candidate in Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China. Education: Ph D candidate (Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou,…