
Imaging plant germline differentiation within Arabidopsis flowers by light sheet microscopy (eLIFE)
Plant Science Research WeeklyAdvances in microscopy have greatly informed our understanding of fundamental plant processes, but the germline cells in flowers have been hard to image as they are tiny and embedded within other tissues. Valuchova et al. present a method using light sheet fluorescence microscopy that allows live cell…

GPA5 encodes a Rab5a effector required for post-Golgi trafficking of rice storage proteins ($) (Plant Cell)
Plant Science Research WeeklyStorage proteins secreted into vacuoles during seed development serve as precursors for germination and plant growth. In this paper, Ren et al. identified a regulator, GLUTELIN PRECURSOR ACCUMULATION 5 (GPA5) that is involved in protein trafficking into the vacuoles during seed development. The loss…

NONSTOP GLUMES 1 regulates spikelet development in rice (Plant Cell)
Plant Science Research WeeklyRecently, several genes affecting rice architecture have been identified that may increase yields by increasing the number of grains formed, but as yet the genetic control of rice inflorescence architecture and organ identity is still being worked out. Zhuang et al. identified mutants of the NONSTOP…

Pollination of Cretaceous flowers (PNAS)
Plant Science Research WeeklyLike something from Jurassic Park, a tiny insect embedded in amber has provided new insights into life millions of years ago. But in this case, the 99 million year old insect shows us that, as Darwin surmised, insects really were important contributors to angiosperm pollination from their origins. In…

A mutualistic interaction between Streptomyces bacteria, strawberry plants and pollinating bees (Nature Comms)
Plant Science Research WeeklySome species of Streptomyces bacteria produce antimicrobial compounds that have been shown to enhance plant resistance to pathogens. Kim et al. show that his protection can extend to a pollinator. The Streptomyces defends the plant against Botrytis cinerea and protects the bees against insect pathogens…

Protocol for rapid clearing and staining of fixed Arabidopsis ovules for improved imaging by confocal laser scanning microscopy (Plant Methods)
Plant Science Research WeeklyThis is a very interesting paper that provide a new, fast and easy protocol, with specific step-by-step instructions, for a trustworthy imaging with cellular resolution of fixed Arabidopsis ovules at different developmental stages. The authors combine two previously outlined techniques: clearing of fixed…

Early origin of miRNA-SPL module in reproductive development revealed by liverwort (Curr. Biol)
Plant Science Research WeeklyIn Arabidopsis and other angiosperms, transition to flowering is controlled by a regulatory module that includes transcription factors from the SPL family and a miRNA miR156 targeting them. Marchantia and bryophytes do not make flowers, but there is an equivalent module that includes miR529c and a single…

The QKY-SYP121 complex controls long-distance florigen movement ($) (Plant Cell)
Plant Science Research WeeklyIn Arabidopsis thaliana, changes in day-length (photoperiod) activate the expression and transport of phloem-mobile florigen (FT, FLOWERING LOCUS T) to the shoot apical meristem to trigger the transition to flowering. While the role of FT as a long-distance signal is well-established, the underlying…

Arabidopsis endosperm response to paternal genome dosage is regulated by small RNA pathway (Plant Cell)
Plant Science Research WeeklyThe endosperm, a tissue that transfers nutrients from maternal tissue to the embryo, is normally triploid, with two copies of the maternal genome and one of the paternal genome. Excess paternal genomes usually leads to endosperm abnormalities and seed abortion. Previous studies have shown that the RNA…