
Glycomic analysis of plant endomembrane vesicles (Plant Cell)
Plant Science Research WeeklyEndomembrane 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)
Plant Science Research WeeklyGenomics 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)
Plant Science Research WeeklyFuture 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
Blog, Plant Physiology(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)
Plant Science Research WeeklyThis 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.…

Review: Nicotiana benthamiana: a workhorse of model plants (Annu Rev Phytopathol)
Plant Science Research WeeklyFor years, scientists have relied on model species to investigate the fundamental nature of plants. Not surprisingly, these systems have facilitated our combined efforts for a deeper understanding of complex plant phenomena, from the coordinated orchestration of developmental programs to the emerging…

Experimental Reproducibility 101 (Part 3)
BlogThis article, by Benjamin Schwessinger and Sonali Roy, is the third of three and is based on a workshop called “Reproducibility for all” presented at PlantBio18 by Benjamin Schwessinger, Sonali Roy, and Lenny Teytelman. In Part 1 (here), the authors describe the importance of having a data management…

A synthetic oxygen sensing device for plants
Plant Science Research WeeklyPlants can die from a lack of oxygen (hypoxia), which contributes to the devastating losses caused by flooding. Iacopino et al. set out to develop a more specific method for detecting oxygen levels in plants, based on the mammalian Hypoxia Inducible transcription Factor HIF. HIF is hydroxylated by…

Quantitative imaging to investigate regulators of membrane trafficking in Arabidopsis stomatal closure ($) Traffic
Plant Science Research WeeklyProperly functioning guard cells change size in response to myriad stimuli to control the passage of water and gasses through stomata. The change in volume is mirrored by changes in plasma membrane surface area, with membrane moving dynamically between tonoplast and plasma membrane as needed. Bourdais…