Review: Jasmonate signalling in carnivorous plants: Copycat of plant defence mechanisms (J Exp Bot)
Plant Science Research WeeklyCarnivorous plants are one of the easiest ways to demonstrate to children that “plants are cool too”. In their new review, Pavlovič and Mithöfer show that carnivorous plants can also be a gateway to introduce the subject of how plants defend themselves against herbivory, by drawing links between…
Molecular digitization of 689 vascular plant species from the Ruili Botanical Garden (Giga Science)
Plant Science Research WeeklyRecent advances in genome sequencing have increased our understanding of plant evolution and provided insights into factors affecting agriculturally important traits (e.g., yield, stress tolerance). There is an impetus to increase the quantity and quality of genomes publically available with around 350…
Pollinators and herbivores boost the evolution of floral traits ($) Science
Plant Science Research WeeklyThe characteristics of flowers, including morphology, color, nectar and fragrance, are closely related to their pollination methods. To attract pollinators, plants often produce large, colorful, or fragrant flowers. Increasing evidence has indicated that herbivorous feeding activity also affects flower…
Transposable elements drive rapid phenotypic variation in Capsella rubella (PNAS)
Plant Science Research WeeklyHow can a species with limited genetic variation rapidly adapt to new environments? This phenomenon is known as the genetic paradox of invasion. Here, Niu et al. studied the role of Transposable Elements (TEs) in Capsella rubella, focusing on flowering-time variation. By analyzing population genomics…
Dramatic changes in repeat element content and gene family sizes underlie the high-altitude adaptation of rock-cress (PNAS)
Plant Science Research WeeklyThe ability to grow on the ‘roof of the world’ - the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, makes Crucihimalaya himalaica (Rock-cress) an important model for studying adaptive evolution. A draft genome sequence of C. himalaica reported by Zhang et al. now provides clues to its speciation and ecological adaptation.…
Review: Copy Number Variations shaping plant domestication (Trends Plant Sci)
Plant Science Research WeeklyHuman-associated plant domestication is a co-evolutionary process that began at least 12,000 years ago. However, the genetic variations underlying many domestication traits are still unknown. In this review, Lye and Purugganan discuss how copy number variations (CNVs) have played an important role in…
Control of proliferation in the haploid meristem by CLE peptide signaling in Marchantia polymorpha (PLOS Genetics)
Plant Science Research WeeklyThe peptide/hormones CLE (CLAVATA3/EMBRYO SURROUNDING REGION-related) and their receptors are a fascinating cell signal system that regulates meristems activity in angiosperms and is crucial for the establishment of 3D forms. How this system works in bryophytes is very relevant to understand its evolution…
Convergent gene loss in aquatic plants predicts new components of plant immunity and drought response (bioRxiv)
Plant Science Research WeeklyPlants transitioned from water to land around 450 Million years ago. Since their emergence onto land, there have been at least a few reversion events to aquatic environments (e.g., duckweed, humped bladderwort). These big evolutionary events imply adaptation to completely different kinds of biotic and…
Rapid evolution of protein diversity by de novo origination in Oryza (Nature Ecol Evol)
Plant Science Research WeeklyThe de-novo origin of new protein-coding genes from non-coding regions of plant genomes is a contributor to protein diversity, although it has been difficult to quantify to what extent this process occurs. High quality reference genome maps, deep transcriptome and targeted proteome sequencing are requisite…