Recent Posts

Exploring Pollen Patterns to Learn How Cells Create Distinct Domains

Lee et al. identify a protein involved in pollen aperture development and the formation of distinct membrane domains in microspores. https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.18.00442  By Byung Ha Lee and Anna Dobritsa Background: Pollen grains are famous for their ability to develop various intricate patterns…

SUMO Aids Rapid Regulation of Hormone Responses

Srivastava et al. identify a mechanism for rapid regulation of jasmonic acid signaling. Plant Cell  https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.18.00036 Background: The sessile nature of plants dictates that growth must be integrated with changes in the natural environment. Modulation of hormone signalling pathways…

Programmed Cell Death in the Root Cap

Huysmans et al. identify cell death regulatory proteins in root cap cells. Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.18.00293 Background: Some plants, such as giant sequoia trees, can grow into the “Largest Living Things on Earth.” Ironically, most of a tree’s biomass is actually not alive but…

PGI1 is a Determinant of Seed Yield

Bahaji et al. identify an important player determining seed yield in Arabidopsis. https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.18.00312 Background: Oilseeds are major sources of calories for human consumption and have a significant agricultural and industrial value. Seed number and weight are the two main components…

Nectary Development in Petunia and Arabidopsis, a Sweet Story!

Morel et al. study the nectar-producing organs in flowers and identify major regulators of nectary size https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.18.00425 By Patrice Morel and Michiel Vandenbussche Background: Nectaries are the organs that produce nectar, a sugary substance that motivates pollinators such as…

Proteins that Function in Lipid Droplets

Kretzschmar et al. study the proteome of lipid droplets and identify a protein that functions in protein degradation during germination https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.18.00276 Background:  Lipid droplets (LDs) are structures inside cells that store oil or fat, for example, in oil seeds. They were once…

Gatekeepers of Storage Lipids in Seeds: The Switch-Off Mechanism

Deruyffelaere et al. investigate lipid mobilization during seed germination. Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.18.00275 By Sabine D’ANDREA and Corine ENARD Background:  In cells, storage lipids are compartmentalized in specialized organelles called lipid droplets (LDs). The structure…

BBX28 Negatively Regulates Photomorphogenesis

Lin et al. show that B-BOX DOMAIN PROTEIN28 plays a role in regulating plant development in response to light signals. Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.18.00226. By Dongqing Xu and Xing Wang Deng Background: Sunlight is one of the key environmental cues influencing plant growth and development.…

Auxin Function in a Brown Alga


Auxin controls body plan patterning in land plants and it has been proposed to play a similar role in the development of brown algae (Phaeophyta) despite their distant evolutionary relationship with land plants. In flowering plants and many multicellular brown algae, the establishment of the apical-basal…