Recent Posts

Generating novel, dual herbicide-resistant crops using CRISPR-mediated gene editing (Plant Physiol)

There is an ever-growing need for novel herbicides as more weeds are becoming resistant to commonly used herbicides. In a recent report from Hu et al., the authors identified that a previously described cellulose biosynthesis-inhibiting chemical, C17, possesses an herbicidal quality. The authors showed…

Tandem fluorescent protein timers for non-invasive relative protein lifetime measurement in plants (Plant Physiol)

Proteins are in a dynamic state of synthesis and degradation and their half-lives can be adjusted under various circumstances. Many rapidly degraded proteins function as regulatory molecules, such as transcription factors. The rapid turnover of these proteins is necessary to allow their levels to change…

Life between the cells: measuring apoplast hydration and content (Plant Phys)

The extracellular space within the leaves, or apoplast, has an active role in many aspects of plant physiology; since water from transpiration, sucrose from photosynthesis and other metabolites pass through the apoplast. Since abiotic and biotic factors (i.e., pathogens) modify the composition of the…

Four auxin-like compounds can selectively regulate plant development (PNAS)

Plants have developed their own strategies to ensure developmental plasticity, such as the use of phytohormones. The phytohormone auxin affects multiple aspects of plant development. Auxin is perceived via a co-receptor complex called TIR1/AFB-AUX/IAA, and SCF TIR1/AFB degrades AUX/IAA proteins to liberate…

Glycomic analysis of plant endomembrane vesicles (Plant Cell)

Endomembrane vesicles carry not only secreted proteins but also carbohydrates for cell wall synthesis, yet relatively less is know about this latter process. Wilkop et al. describe a method to investigate the glycan contents of specific subsets of vesicles, to begin to understand how these cargos are…

Proteome-wide, structure-based prediction of protein-protein interactions (Plant Physiol)

Genomics and transcriptomics have brought huge advances in understanding of plant science, but proteomics is both more challenging and in some ways more relevant to understand what is happening inside of a cell. Proteins function largely through their interactions with other proteins, so it is important…

Arabidopsis bioinformatics resources: Current state, challenges, and priorities for the future (Plant Direct)

Future research success demands that data are reliable, accessible and shareable. This means that as types and magnitudes of data change, best practices for how data are collected and stored must be regularly updated. Following a focused workshop, the International Arabidopsis Informatics Consortium…

New imaging technique developed for the quantitative visualization of sucrose in plants

(Translated from the original) Regina Devrient Press and Public Relations Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research   Sucrose is the primary transport form of sugar in plants. It therefore plays an essential role as an energy source, but also as a signal generator under…

A step-by-step guide for geometric morphometrics of floral symmetry (Frontiers in Plant Science)

This publication has many beautiful images of flowers and provides a detailed guide that researchers can use to statistically analyze corolla shape and structure. Part of what makes the flowers in these pictures so beautiful to our eyes and encourages us to hit “share” is their symmetrical designs.…