Recent Posts

Nucleocytoplasmic shuttling of ETHYLENE RESPONSE FACTOR 5 mediated by nitric oxide suppresses ethylene biosynthesis in apple fruit (New Phytol.)

Mechanisms of phytohormone modulation and their interface with other regulatory molecules are still being uncovered. Nitric oxide (NO) is a regulatory molecule which has been shown to affect ethylene biosynthesis through the action of ETHYLENE RESPONSE FACTOR 5 (ERF5) in apple fruit. New work by Ji et…

Ethylene augments root hypoxia tolerance through amelioration of reactive oxygen species and growth cessation (bioRxiv)

Flooding presents a dual threat to plants; not only is mitochondrial respiration supressed during the resulting hypoxic conditions, but once the floodwaters recede, the return to ambient oxygen levels triggers a cascade of harmful reaction oxygen species (ROS). One of the most well-studied responses…

The sweet and musky scent of home: biogenic ethylene fine-tunes seed germination in wetlands (Plant Biol.)

Light, temperature, substrate moisture and oxygen availability are renowned germination triggers for wetland species. However, wetlands sediments are a significant source of gases that might shape the species germination behavior, such as ethylene –a renowned germination promoter. Still, little is…

A Rosy Scenario for Flower Opening

Cheng et al. explore how ethylene promotes the asymmetric growth of petal bases to promote flower opening in rose. The Plant Cell (2021) https://doi.org/10.1093/plcell/koab031  By Chengchen Xia, Junping Gao, and Nan Ma  Background: Flowers are unique structures in angiosperms that are used for…

The Role of Ethylene and Ethylene Response Factors in the Heat Stress Response

Summary: Huang et al. elucidate a link between ethylene signaling and heat stress responses. Plant Cell https://bit.ly/3pTjNBK By Jianyan Huang, Xiaobo Zhao, Marco Bürger, Yurong Wang, Joanne Chory Background: Temperature is an environmental factor that has one of the most dramatic effects on…

To grow or not to grow: specific lipoxygenases control wound-induced growth restriction

To grow or not to grow: specific lipoxygenases control wound-induced growth restriction Amna Mhamdi Ghent University, Department of Plant Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, and VIB Center for Plant Systems Biology, 9052 Ghent, Belgium Address correspondence to: amna.mhamdi@psb.ugent.be As…

MaXB3 Limits Ethylene Production and Ripening of Banana Fruits

Author: Sjon Hartman ORCID: 0000-0002-6709-6436 Plant Ecophysiology, Institute of Environmental Biology, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH, Utrecht, The Netherlands j.g.w.hartman@uu.nl Ripening of climacteric fruits such as banana (Musa acuminata), tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), and…

Ethylene independent functions of ACC in Marchantia polymorpha (Nature Plants)

Ethylene is synthesized from 1-Aminocyclopropane carboxylic acid (ACC), and ACC has long been used as a substitute to induce ethylene responses. In a new study, Li and colleagues show that ACC functions as a stand-alone signaling molecule in the liverwort Marchantia. While treatment with ethylene…

Ethylene signaling mediates host invasion by parasitic plants (Science Advances)

Parasitic plants cause agricultural devastation across the globe, yet the molecular basis of their parasitism is largely enigmatic. They grapple and intrude into the host roots with an organ called the haustorium. Haustoria formation is induced upon recognition of host-derived haustorium-inducing factors…