Combinatorial engineering of signaling networks for drought tolerance (Plant Biotechnol. J.)
Plant Science Research WeeklySeveral potential targets have been suggested to improve drought tolerance and water-use efficiency of crops, but many genes when upregulated can cause negative growth trade-offs. Stress recognition and signaling proteins are attractive targets as they may exert control over multiple downstream pathways…
Review: Dry architecture: towards the understanding of the variation of longevity in desiccation- tolerant germplasm ($) (Seed Sci. Res.)
Plant Science Research WeeklyMost seeds, pollen grains, and fern spores are desiccation-tolerant, meaning they remain viable after drying to low water contents. Given this property, they can be stored in cold and dry conditions and potentially remain alive for several years. However, there is increasing evidence that seed longevity…
Arabinogalactan-proteins of Zostera marina L. contain unique glycan structures and provide insight into adaption processes to saline environments (Sci. Reports)
Plant Science Research WeeklySeagrasses are fascinating examples of adaptation. Like dolphins and other sea mammals, they are marine-dwelling descendants of species that had fully adapted to life on land. To survive submerged in saltwater has necessitated morphological, anatomical and physiological adaptations. Recent genome analysis…
A prion-like domain in ELF3 functions as a thermosensor in Arabidopsis (Nature)
Plant Science Research WeeklyAs sessile organisms, sensing the external conditions is critical for plants to complete their life cycle and temperature is one of the major factors. In Arabidopsis, the evening complex senses the temperature and it consists of EARLY FLOWERING3 (ELF3), a scaffolding protein; ELF4, helical protein; LUX…
KIN10 promotes stomatal development through stabilization of the SPEECHLESS transcription factor (Nat. Commun.)
Plant Science Research Weekly
Plants communicate with the environment through stomata (i.e., pores found on leaf surfaces) and regulate gas exchange depending on internal and external cues by optimizing stomata density. Still, how plants integrate metabolic and environmental signals remain to be determined. Here, Han and colleagues…
Root angle modifications by the DRO1 homolog improve rice yields in saline paddy fields (PNAS)
Plant Science Research WeeklyThe spatial configuration of roots is a complex and critical trait for productivity that is impacted by abiotic stresses such as drought, waterlogging, and salinity. Soil salinity is expected to affect 50% of agricultural land worldwide by 2050. This research describes that the loss of function of qSOR1…
A protoxylem-specific NAC transcription factor modulates heat and drought stress in maize (PNAS)
Plant Science Research Weekly
Excessive heat and water deficit coincide with flowering and result in developmental defeats such as male floral organs browning, infertile pollen, and failure in fertilization: a syndrome known as “tassel blasting” in maize. The genetic pathway underlying tassel blasting is not well characterized.…
A constitutively monomeric UVR8 photoreceptor allele confers enhanced UV-B photomorphogenesis (bioRxiv)
Plant Science Research WeeklyIn response to UV-B light, the plant UV-B photoreceptor UV RESISTANCE LOCUS 8 (UVR8) monomerizes and activates, inducing UV-B acclimation and survival. Re-dimerization by REPRESSOR OF UV-B PHOTOMORPHOGENESIS 1 (RUP1) and RUP2 inactivates UVR8. In order to further clarify UVR8 pathway regulation, Podolec…
Antagonistic regulation of the gibberellic acid response during stem growth in rice (Nature)
Plant Science Research WeeklyStem growth determines the final height of graminaceous plants and greatly influences productivity in cultivated species (e.g., short internodes in semi-dwarf rice varieties to increase lodging resistance) and adaptation in wild species (e.g., elongated internodes in tall deepwater rice to help survive…