Previously, growth-promoting endophytic (living within the plant) microbes were isolated from plants (narrowleaf cattail, Typha angustifolia) growing in a nutrient-poor site in an effort to identify new beneficial microbes. One of these identified is the fungus Rhodotorula mucilaginosa. Now, Paul et…

Bacteriophages are viruses that infect bacteria. As agents that weaken or destroy pathogens, they have shown therapeutic promise in human and plant disease treatment. Wang et al. studied the effect on pathogenic Ralstonia solanacearum of different phages individually and in combinations in the rhizosphere…

Transgenic plant production often involves an agar-based selection step in which plants that have taken up the introduced DNA (containing a selectable marker) show resistance to a corresponding antibiotic. Typically, putatively transformed seeds are surface sterilized prior to plating so that microbes…

The major objectives of sustainable agriculture are to fulfill food requirements, maintain a safe environment and profitable economy, and withstand climate change. Here, Davis et al. discuss a multidimensional approach to achieve sustainable agriculture in India by transitioning some areas from growing…

Review. Dare to change, the dynamics behind plasmodesmata-mediated cell-to-cell communication A new review by Petit et al. skillfully highlights the role of plasmodesmata at the interface between cell biology and whole-plant physiology. These tiny channels that connect plant cells determine what…

Ze-Hua Guo, first author of Arabidopsis cytosolic acyl-CoA-binding proteins function in determining seed oil composition Current Position: Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong, China  Education: PhD in Plant Molecular Biology at the University of Hong Kong (Hong Kong,…

Soledad Traubenik, first author of Reprogramming of root cells during nitrogen-fixing symbiosis involves dynamic polysome association of coding and non-coding RNAs Current Position: Ph.D. candidate at Dr. María Eugenia Zanetti and Dr. Flavio Blanco’s Root Biology lab, Institute of Biotechnology and…

Alecia Biel, first author of A role for plant KASH proteins in regulating stomatal dynamics Current Position: PhD student, The Ohio State University, Columbus OH Education: BS in Biology at Pennsylvania State University, University Park PA Non-scientific Interests: reading sci/fi fantasy novels,…