Recent Posts

Thylakoid membranes or a disulfide bond help to properly fold Plsp1, a protein that is essential for photosynthesis

McKinnon et al. investigate the effects of a membrane on the folding of a thylakoid protease. Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.19.00797 By Lucas McKinnon and Steven Theg Background: Inside a chloroplast is the light-absorbing membrane called the thylakoid, which contains many different proteins…

Cytokinin can reprogram leaf patterning

Muszynski et al. explore the mechanisms controlling tissue organization in developing leaves. Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.19.00677 By Michael G. Muszynski, University of Hawaiʻi – Mānoa  Background: Leaves are responsible for capturing sunlight and carbon dioxide that provide…

Cellulose synthase-like D (CSLD) 3 protein is a beta-1,4-glucan synthase

Yang et al. probe the biosynthetic activity of a protein involved in cell wall deposition. Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.19.00637 Jiyuan Yang, Erik Nielsen. Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA  Background:…

How Light Activates the Plant Circadian Clock

Liu et al. discover how members of the photosensory-signaling pathway orchestrate circadian clock gene expression to regulate plant responses to daily changes in the light environment. Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.19.00981  Background: Plants use an endogenous time-keeping mechanism known…

Plant Pathogens Recruit PI(4,5)P2 to the Interfacial Membrane for Disease Development

Qin et al. show that PI(4,5)P2 functions as a susceptibility factor for plant disease. Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.19.00970 By Li Qin and Yangdou Wei. Department of Biology, University of Saskatchewan, Canada Background: Biotrophic plant pathogens such as powdery mildews and rusts require…

Pollen surface replenished: a tapetal flavonoid transporter

Grunewald et al. identify a flavonoid transporter required for the deposition of flavonol-b-1,2-linked diglycosides to the outer pollen wall in Arabidopsis thaliana. The Plant Cell (2020) https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.19.00801 By Stephan Grunewald and Thomas Vogt, Leibniz Institute of Plant Biochemistry,…

Tools to unravel the mystery of why some tomatoes are hairier than others

Galdon-Armero et al. present an image resource that can be used to identify natural variation in leaf epidermal development in tomato. The Plant Cell (2020). https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.20.00127 By Javier Galdon-Armero and Cathie Martin, John Innes Centre, Norwich, UK Background: Just like our…

RNA polymerase II transcription: cleave to elongate

Antosz et al. show that the ability of RNA polymerase II to cleave transcripts is required for proper transcription and plant growth. Wojciech Antosz and Klaus Grasser, University of Regensburg https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.19.00891   Background: In plants as in other eukaryotes, nuclear…

Phosphorus sensing in Chlamydomonas by TORC1 subunit LST8

Couso et al. developed a TOR kinase assay for Chlamydomonas and show how subunit LST8 senses phosphorus availability and modulates cell growth. Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.19.00179 By I. Couso, M.E. Pérez-Pérez, M.M. Ford, E. Martínez-Force, L.M. Hicks, J.G. Umen, and J.L. Crespo. Background:…