Recent Posts

Early Holocene crop cultivation and landscape modification in Amazonia (Nature)

To date, archeobotanical and genetic studies indicated four centers of plant cultivation in the early Holocene: China and the Near East in the Old World, and southwestern Mexico and northwestern South America in the New World. Recent research of Lombardo et al. revealed that Llanos de Moxos (Bolivia)…

Plant Science Research Weekly: April 17th

Review. Beyond natural: Synthetic expansions of botanical form and function “The goal of synthetic biology is to advance the ability to dependably and consistently design or reprogram living organisms and to fabricate products from biologically-derived materials.” In this review, Patron focuses…

Recognizing Plant Physiology authors: Isha Kalra

Isha Kalra, first author of Chlamydomonas sp. UWO 241 exhibits high cyclic electron flow and rewired metabolism under high salinity Current Position: Ph.D. candidate, Microbiology Department, Miami University Education: B.E. (Hons.) Electronics and Instrumentation + MSc. (Hons.) Biological Science…

DREPP in Nanodomains Regulates Microtubule Fragmentation during Symbiotic Infection

In the legume-rhizobium root nodule, nitrogen fixing rhizobia are accommodated inside plant cells. In the Medicago – Sinorhizobium model system, the internalization of rhizobia into the host plant is triggered by Nod factors secreted from the symbiotic bacteria. The signals are perceived by the host…

Recognizing Plant Cell authors: Xixi Zhang

Xixi Zhang, first author of Arabidopsis Flippases Cooperate with ARF GTPase Exchange Factors to Regulate the Trafficking and Polarity of PIN Auxin Transporters Current Position: Predoctoral visiting scientist in Prof. Jiří Friml’s lab at Institute of Science and Technology, Austria (IST Austria);…

Copy Number Variations in the Arabidopsis Genome

Żmieńko et al. generate a catalog of large copy number variations in Arabidopsis, shedding light on the genetic basis of phenotypic variation. Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.19.00640 By Agnieszka Żmieńko and Marek Figlerowicz, Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences,…

Recognizing Plant Direct authors: Yinghui Li

Yinghui Li, first author of Exogenous sodium diethyldithiocarbamate, a Jasmonic acid biosynthesis inhibitor, induced resistance to powdery mildew in wheat Current Position: post-doctoral researcher Education:  PhD and Master, College of Agriculture, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China Non-scientific…

The possible danger of divergent non-coding transcription in plants: widespread RNAi

Thieffry et al. give a definitive answer to the question of divergent transcription initiation in Arabidopsis, and discover that if left unchecked, it would lead to rampant RNAi. The Plant Cell (2020) https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.19.00815 By Albin Sandelin 1,2, Peter Brodersen 1 and Axel Thieffry 1,2,…

Discovering Lipid Droplet Proteins—from Seeds to Seedlings

Lynn GL Richardson, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48843 During germination and early seedling establishment, embryos rely on stored energy for growth and cellular maintenance until photoautotrophic growth takes over. Proteins and lipids make up most of the energy-rich stores in the embryo,…