Low temperature is one of the environmental factors limiting the plant distribution. Yet there are some plants that can survive freezing temperatures, such as Boechera stricta, native to the Rocky Mountains, spread across a broad range of elevations. Arisz and colleagues observed that freezing tolerance…

Abscisic acid (ABA) is a plant hormone involved in many plant processes – from seed maturation to drought responses. ABA is perceived by intracellular pyrabactin resistance and PYR-like family (PYR/PYL) receptors, counting 14 genes in Arabidopsis, representing the largest family of plant receptors. …

During seedling greening, chloroplasts are formed from proplastids. Liang and Zhu et al. used a combination of 3D electron tomography of cryo-fixed Arabidopsis cotyledons at various times after illumination to track their development. The fine structure images, accompanied by transcriptomic analysis…

Plants have many proteins found in the light-harvesting complex, whereas cyanobacteria have only the high-light-inducible proteins (Hlips).  One-helix proteins (OHPs) are the plant homologs of Hlips, but their precise functions have been unclear. Hey and Grimm used genetic and biochemical approaches…

The angle at which leaves extend are held in a rice plant (tiller angle) affects the plant’s ability to intercept light and therefore potential yield. Genetic studies have identified a few genes involved in tiller angle, including the LAZY1 gene that encodes a protein involved in auxin transport. To…

Potato is susceptible to many pathogens. To facilitate breeding programs, Ramšak et al. combined transcriptomic data from potato/virus interactions with a defense network model developed mainly from Arabidopsis. Their model revealed a previously undescribed interaction between ethylene and salicylate…

Auxin methylation is required for differential growth in Arabidopsis Plants need to navigate and adjust their growth according to the environmental clues, such as light or gravity. Asymmetric distribution of auxin is necessary for organ bending. Abbas and colleagues show that conversion of indole-3-acetic…

Živa Ramšak, first author of Network modelling unravels mechanisms of crosstalk between ethylene and salicylate signalling in potato Current Position: Postdoctoral Researcher at the National Institute of Biology, Ljubljana, Slovenia Education: PhD in Bioinformatics (Biotechnical Faculty, University…