Recent Posts

A dirigent protein complex directs lignin polymerization and assembly of the root diffusion barrier

In Latin, dirigere means “to align or guide”, so in 1997 when a protein was identified that guides the stereoselectivity of another enzyme it was named as a dirigent protein. Subsequent studies found that the Arabidopsis genome encodes 25 dirigent proteins (DPs). In this new work, Gao et al. characterized…

Lignin chemistry is fine-tuned on the nanoscale by different combinations of LACCASES

Blaschek et al. explore the spatial control of lignin chemistry. Leonard Blaschek1 and Edouard Pesquet1,2,3 1 Department of Ecology, Environment and Plant Sciences (DEEP), Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden 2 Umeå Plant Science Centre (UPSC), Department of Plant Physiology, Umeå…

Single-residue substitution in histone H3 leads to over-lignification in Arabidopsis

Chromatin changes are at the core of plant development and adaptation, as they constitute a crucial layer of gene expression control. The effects of different chromatin marks have historically been studied through mutations to the protein complexes depositing and removing the marks, which results in…

Specific lignin chemistries tune the hydraulic and biomechanical properties of each plant sap conduction pipe to resist/recover from drought

Ménard et al. examine the properties of lignin in the plant vasculature. Delphine Ménard1,2 and Edouard Pesquet1,2,3 1 Department of Ecology, Environment and Plant Sciences (DEEP), Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden 2 Umeå Plant Science Centre (UPSC), Department of Plant Physiology,…