Is All Root Hair Development the Same?
Plant Physiology, Plant Physiology: On The Inside, Research, Research Blog0 Comments
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Root hairs are long tubular extensions of root epidermal cells that greatly increase the root surface area and thereby assist in water and nutrient absorption. Root hairs are found in nearly all vascular plants, including angiosperms, gymnosperms, and lycophytes, and they exhibit similar cellular features,…
Wild tobacco genomes reveal the evolution of nicotine biosynthesis
Plant Science Research Weekly, ResearchThe 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…
Review: Ancestral alliances: Plant mutualistic symbioses with fungi and bacteria ($)
Plant Science Research Weekly, ResearchMartin et al. have written a must-read review on the evolution of plant mutualistic symbioses and strategies through which hosts and microbes communicate and coordinate their activities. This review also covers the contributions of hormones in the formation of symbiotic tissues, and how the mutualistic…
Early history of Arabidopsis thaliana
Plant Science Research Weekly, ResearchArabidopsis thaliana is a good study system to shed light on evolutionary processes. Its broad native range and genetic diversity provide resources to study speciation and local adaptation. Durvasula et al. studied the early history and transition to selfing of this species by comparing genome sequences…
Silver birch: genome sequence and population genomic analyses
Plant Science Research Weekly, ResearchSalojärvi et al. have assembled the genome of silver birch (Betula pendula) and examined genomic diversity across 150 individuals collected from across Northern Europe and Asia. Their study shows that there have been several genetic bottlenecks associated with climate upheaval (e.g., at the K-Pg boundary…
Young inversion with multiple linked QTLs under selection in a hybrid zone
Plant Science Research Weekly, ResearchChromosomal inversions are chromosomal rearrangements that can span several Mb and have been described in several organisms from Drosophila to maize. Inversions suppress recombination and can favor local adaptation and speciation if they capture favorable alleles. It’s not clear though if favorable…
Review: Phytochrome diversification in cyanobacteria and eukaryotic algae ($)
Plant Science Research Weekly, ResearchPhytochromes were first characterized in classic studies of plants, in which their contributions to seed germination and initiation of flowering were described. Subsequently, phytochromes were identified in cyanobacteria and in non-photosynthetic organisms including fungi. Rockwell and Lagarias review…
Review: Light-harvesting antenna complexes in Physcomitrella patens: implications for evolutionary transition from green algae to land plants ($)
Plant Science Research Weekly, ResearchThe ancestors of land plants were aquatic. Myriad changes accompanied the transition from aquatic to terrestrial life, including changes necessitated by the difference in light intensity and quality. Bryophytes, the earliest diverging land plants, have some characteristics that reveal how plants transitioned…
The emergence, evolution, and diversification of the miR390-TAS3-ARF pathway in land plants ($)
Plant Science Research Weekly, ResearchTrans-acting small interfering RNAs (tasiRNAs) are unique to plants. They are the products of TAS genes, but they function to regulate other genes (thus the name “trans-acting”). The production of tasiRNAs requires miRNAs, which bind to and ultimately lead to cleavage of the primary TAS transcript.…