Auxin is a key hormone in almost all stages of the plant development and its main natural form is  indole-3-acetic acid (IAA). In Arabidopsis, several gene families are involved in auxin homeostasis. In this work, Hayashi et al. focus on the roles of DIOXYGENASE FOR AUXIN OXIDATION 1 (DAO1) which converts…

‘Fine tuning’ is a very significant process that takes place in the cell to correctly modulate plant responses. BOTRYTIS-INDUCED KINASE 1 (BIK1) is an important hub protein that is at the center of the signaling hub that controls defense responses. Hence, plants fine tune this important protein through…

Seed production was a decisive adaptation that appeared during plant evolution. Not in vain! The most diverse plant lineage today is that of the so-called seed plants, a group that includes gymnosperms and angiosperms. Therefore, it is not surprising that understanding seed origin and evolution has been…

Review. Chloroplast development in green plant tissues: The interplay between light, hormones, and transcriptional regulation Chloroplasts are indispensable for plant growth and physiological performance; not only for photosynthesis but also for many biochemical processes. Due to the endosymbiont…

Stephen Deslauriers, first author of "Electrophysiological study of Arabidopsis ABCB4 and PIN2 auxin transporters: Evidence of auxin activation and interaction enhancing auxin selectivity" Current Position: Assistant Professor of Biology, University of Minnesota Morris Education: B.S. Biology (University…

Julius, McCubbin, and Mertz, et al. explore the connection between cell wall synthesis and sugar transport. Tyler J. McCubbin1,4, Benjamin T. Julius1, and David M. Braun1 1Divisions of Plant and Biological Sciences, Interdisciplinary Plant Group, and the Missouri Maize Center, University of Missouri,…

Shang and colleagues investigated the molecular mechanisms that contributed to stigma insertion during tomato domestication and improvement.  By Lele Shang, Jianwen Song and Yuyang Zhang, Huazhong Agricultural University  Background: In flowering plants, flower morphology influences pollination.…

Huapeng Zhou, first author of "PAMP-INDUCED SECRETED PEPTIDE 3 modulates salt tolerance through RECEPTOR-LIKE KINASE 7 in plants"   Current position: Associate Professor, College of Life Sciences, Sichuan University, China Education: Ph.D., Beijing Normal University & National Institute…