Wild tobacco genomes reveal the evolution of nicotine biosynthesis
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The genus Nicotiana encompasses several species and hybrids, the most famous being Nicotiana tabacum, cultivated for production of tobacco. Xu et al. sequenced the genome of Nicotiana attenuata and Nicotiana obtusifolia with an interest in identifying the origins of nicotine biosynthesis. Nicotine is…
Exploring the chemical diversity and distribution of marine cyanobacteria and algae through mass spectrometry
Plant Science Research Weekly, ResearchLike plants, algae and cyanobacteria produce a dizzying array of largely unexplored natural products that can be used as medicines, in biotechnology and in agriculture. Luzzatto-Knaan et al. used mass spectrometry (MS) to explore chemical diversity from marine samples collected across space and time.…
Review: Advances in methods for identification and characterization of plant transporter function ($)
Plant Science Research Weekly, ResearchTransporters are massively important for the functions of a cell and organism, but also notoriously difficult to study. Larsen et al. review advances in the tools available for transporter research, ranging from expression in Xenopus oocytes to genetic screens using toxic analogues and fluorescent substrates,…
A Flavone Synthase that Alters Lignin
Plant Physiology, Plant Physiology: On The Inside, ResearchLignin, a ubiquitous phenylpropanoid polymer found in the cell walls of vascular plants, is derived primarily from oxidative couplings of monolignols (p-hydroxycinnamyl alcohols). By filling up spaces between cell wall polysaccharides (cellulose and hemicelluloses), lignin confers increased mechanical…
Transcriptome analysis illuminates the nature of the intracellular interaction in a vertebrate-algal symbiosis
Plant Science Research Weekly, ResearchChloroplasts are of course the descendants of ancient endosymbiotic cyanobacteria. While there are examples of photosynthetic bacteria or algae living in animal tissues (e.g., anemones and corals), vertebrate endosymbiosis is rare. One exception is the interaction between a salamander Ambystoma maculatum…
Technical Advance: Quantification of near attomole gibberellins in floral organs dissected froma single Arabidopsis flower ($)
Plant Science Research Weekly, ResearchWe all learned the series milli-, micro-, nano-, pico-, femto-, but I didn’t learn atto- (10-18), as it’s rarely used in biology, representing such a tiny number (FYI, atto- is followed by zepto- and yocto-). Li et al provide a method for quantifying gibberellin (GA) hormones at “near attomole”…
Breakthrough Technologies: Hydroxyproline-rich glycoproteins – bioinformatics and evolution
Plant Science Research Weekly, ResearchA pair of Breakthrough Technology papers in Plant Physiology discusses new tools to identify hydroxyproline-rich glycoproteins and insights into their evolution. Hydroxyproline-rich glycoproteins (HRGPs) are repeat-rich cell wall proteins that have been described as falling into three large families:…
Zeaxanthin-dependent nonphotochemical quenching does not occur in photosystem I in Arabidopsis thaliana
Plant Science Research Weekly, ResearchPhotosynthesis in plants involves two photosystems acting in series, Photosystem I (PSI) and PSII. Each photosystem is a massive complex consisting of numerous proteins and pigments. The photosystems are efficient at light harvesting but also sensitive to high-light induced photooxidative damage. Photosynthetic…
LIL3, a light-harvesting complex protein, links terpenoid and tetrapyrrole biosynthesis
Plant Science Research Weekly, ResearchThe final step in the synthesis of chlorophyll is the joining of chlorophyllide, (a tetrapyrrole with planar structure similar to heme) to a linear lipid (a product of the terpenoid pathway) that provides an attachment point for the resulting chlorophyll to pigment-binding proteins of the light-harvesting…