Recent Posts

Gene knock-down using gene editing

An efficient method of gene downregulation, where gene expression is reduced but not completely knocked out, is useful for crop improvement. Here, Shen et al. have developed a system to achieve this, by using CRISPR/Cas9 to insert an element containing a Kozak sequence and an ATG start codon just before…

Review: The era of panomics-driven gene discovery in plants

Panomics, an approach integrating multiple ‘omics’ datasets such as genomics, transcriptomics, metabolomics, and phenomics, has seen rapid advancement in recent years due to technological improvements, particularly in genomics. This review focuses on the recent developments in panomics-driven gene…

 De novo domestication: What about the weedy relatives?

Because much of the genetic diversity of our crops plants was lost during domestication, many breeding efforts endeavor to cross in resilience genes from wild relatives. An alternative approach is to rapidly domesticate those wild relatives themselves, for example by editing genes that affect flowering…

Triacylglycerol remodeling to synthesize unusual fatty acids in plants

Plant oils, composed of fatty acids, provide humans and animals with food, essential nutrients, chemicals, and biofuels. Plants accumulate over 450 “unusual” fatty acids, which could hold significant value if they achieve optimal production. Hydroxylated fatty acids (HFA) are unusual fatty acids…

Antibody array-based proteome approach reveals proteins involved in grape seed development

Grape (Vitis vinifera) is a globally cultivated fruit for fresh or processed consumption, and seedless grapes are highly preferred for consumer convenience. In seedless grapes, fertilization occurs but the embryo subsequently aborts, although the molecular basis for this abortion is not understood. Zhang…

Development of a low-cost plant phenotyping facility

New technologies, like personal computers or smart phones, often have limited adoption due to their high cost or requirement for advanced technological skills. Greater affordability and ease of use leads to greater adoption. Here, Yu, Sussman et al. describe the development of an affordable, portable…

 Genomics from bean to cup: New insights into the history of Arabica coffee diversification

As one of the most traded commodities in the world, coffee has cultural and economic impact that spans continents. The main source of coffee beans, Coffea arabica (Arabica), is a polyploid species that resulted from the hybridization between diploid C. canephora (Robusta) and C. eugenioides (Eugenioides).…

Genetic gains underpinning a little-known strawberry Green Revolution

The domestication of cultivated strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa) traces back approximately 300 years, providing us with a relatively comprehensive genealogy of this artificial hybrid species. Strawberry yield in the US has increased by 2,755% since the 1960’s, largely owing to the California strawberry…

Photoperiod-insensitive flowering is associated with the FT gene in hemp

Cannabis sativa, also known as hemp or marijuana, is a widely cultivated plant for a variety of reasons. It is perhaps best known as a producer of an intoxicating chemical, THC, produced by glandular trichomes on female flowers, but low-THC producers (hemp) are cultivated for fibers. Flowering time affects…