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The balance of beneficial and detrimental effects of nitrogen-fixing plants hinges on the degree to which plants regulate fixation to meet their needs. Legumes show a large diversity of fixation regimes due to differing evolutionary strategies.
Invasive Centaurea solstitialis (yellow starthistle) is larger than in its native range as declines in native competitors make water more available. Such opening of niches may be a factor in the widespread success of invasives.
Innate immunity is the first layer of defence in plants. However, pathogens inject effectors that supress this mechanism. Here the authors show that photosynthesis is a key component of plant defence, and that chloroplasts are targeted by pathogens.
Biogenesis of miRNAs involves the transcription of primary miRNAs and subsequent processing by DCL proteins. Now it is revealed that the Elongator complex couples the two processes by mediating the chromatin association of both primary miRNAs and the protein DCL1.
The natural variation in an Arabidopsis population contributed to variation in root-associated bacteria. This variation affected the plants’ fitness showing that small host-mediated changes in the microbiome can have large effects on host health.
Expressing the Pseudomonas ethylene-forming enzyme (Efe) in Synechocystis 6803 causes it to produce ethylene. Tracer experiments and metabolic modelling show that this is achieved by plasticity of fluxes through the tricarboxylic acid cycle.
Analysis of a new Arabidopsis mutant shows that SGT1b protein associates with chaperones to stabilize jasmonate receptor Col1 and auxin hormone F-box receptor TIR1. This study highlights the importance of chaperone complexes in hormone signalling.
The mechanisms of sepal/petal/lip determination in orchids remain obscure. Now a study reveals competition between two protein complexes containing different AP3/AGL6 homologues determine the formation of the complex perianth patterns in orchids.
Natural rubber is composed of extremely long polymers of isoprene. In dandelion, a potential alternative source of latex for industry, a rubber transferase activator, homologous to the human Nogo-B receptor, is necessary for this synthesis.
Studies of plants on a series of Australian sand dunes show that leaves and roots have different approaches to coping with phosphorus limitation. While leaves concentrate on using phosphorus efficiently, roots take on rich and diverse nutrient-acquisition strategies.
Plant species diversity regulates the productivity and stability of natural ecosystems and their resilience to disturbance. Experiments in a managed grassland suggest that whereas species diversity promotes livestock fodder production, genetic diversity enhances the temporal stability of that production.
A gene that helps protect potatoes from destructive late blight is identified in a wild relative. It encodes a membrane receptor-like protein, the first discovered in this system, and makes cultivated potato plants more resistant to a broad range of pathogens.
Plant cell organelles interact dynamically, most notably during photosynthesis. A femtosecond laser technology, that creates localized micro-shockwaves, is used to precisely analyse adhesion forces between peroxisomes, mitochondria and chloroplasts.
The mechanism of how plant growth is controlled during the reproductive phase is not well understood. Now a study reveals a new miRNA-dependent module integrating auxin signalling and developmental pathways to promote Arabidopsis fruit morphogenesis.
Plant organs bend in response to external stimuli such as light or gravity. This study documents the role of the actin–myosin cytoskeleton in the process by which the organs stop bending once they reach adequate posture.
There's a lack of knowledge on the extent to which mRNAs are transported across tissues in plants. Now a study combining RNA-seq with grafting experiments identifies 2,006 genes in Arabidopsis thaliana that generate mobile mRNAs.
Live-cell imaging and finite-element modelling shows how the plant's cytoskeleton gives shape to trichomes. The actin-related protein (ARP)2/3 complex generates an actin meshwork that directs growth through cell-wall anisotropy and organelle transport control.
Herbivorous insects influence forest structure and function. Experiments at the Aspen FACE facility in the US suggest that elevated concentrations of carbon dioxide enhance insect-induced reductions in forest productivity, whereas elevated concentrations of ozone have the opposite effect.
In Arabidopsis the plasma membrane nitrate transceptor (transporter/receptor) NRT1.1 governs many physiological and developmental responses to nitrate. Point mutations in two key residues of the transceptor differentially affect several of the NRT1.1-dependent responses to nitrate, suggesting that NRT1.1 activates independent signalling pathways.
The plant auxin receptor TIR1 needs to associate with the SCF complex to be functional and target substrates. Newly discovered mutations that can block this interaction suggest that TIR1 is autocatalytically degraded once assembled in the SCF complex.