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Plant researchers have speculated about the need for mechanisms to lock-down cell fate in late development. In PRC2 mutants, specialized, endoreplicated root hair cells differentiate normally but later revert to an embryo-like state.
Over-application of nitrogen fertilizer leads to environmental problems in modern agricultural systems. The mining of favourable gene variants for nitrogen-use efficiency is a fundamental way to tackle these dangers.
Grasslands account for as much as one-third of the net primary production on land. Results from a network of experiments carried out on five continents suggest that two or more nutrients often constrain the productivity of these globally significant ecosystems.
Hypoxia has long been studied in relation to anaerobic metabolism. It has now been shown to control development, acting as a cue to maintain the seedling's protective apical hook and a trigger of developmental decisions both before and after the plantlet emerges from the soil into the light.
Auxin binds to its receptor within a ubiquitin ligase complex and promotes the binding and degradation of transcriptional repressors. The discovery of a cyclophilin isomerase enzyme critical in this process adds a new twist to auxin signalling.
One of the world's most important staple crops, the sweet potato, is a naturally transgenic plant that was genetically modified thousands of years ago by a soil bacterium. This surprising discovery may influence the public view of GM crops.
Plant defence against pathogens requires energy, which is provided by photosynthesis. But in addition to this indirect supply role, the photosynthetic light reaction is an active player in fighting off bacteria.
Cells associated with the male germlines of grasses produce huge amounts of small RNAs. A large survey of two types of small RNA in maize uncovers unique characteristics associated with male fertility, but the molecular mechanism by which these germline-associated small RNAs function remains unclear.
Overexpressing a receptor–ligand pair specifically in their native tissue domains dramatically promotes wood formation and biomass production in trees.
The tricarboxcylic acid cycle has been exhaustively studied for decades so it is not unreasonable to expect that it would retain few undiscovered surprises. However, experimental analyses in cyanobacteria show it to be remarkably plastic, dependent on what it is producing and how much.
Most orchid flowers have an enlarged median petal, the ‘lip’, which plays a crucial role in attracting pollinators. The existence and appearance of this organ is due to the presence of specific protein complexes involved in floral development, which are differentially expressed in orchid species with more or less pronounced lips.
Analysis of fruit development in Arabidopsis reveals how a four-component regulatory module, comprising a microRNA and three types of transcription factors, functions to control fruit size.
Breakthrough technologies to study living cells at the subcellular scale reveal that light modulates the dynamic and reversible morphological adaptation of peroxisomes to optimize metabolic exchanges with chloroplasts during photorespiration.
Messenger RNAs are translocated between plant shoots and roots in patterns that reflect directionality, environmental responsiveness, and organ targeting.
The diversity of agricultural systems has been minimized in order to maximize yields under favourable conditions. Diversification of agroecosystems may be required to maintain and stabilize yields in an increasingly unpredictable climate.
A new large-scale sequencing and phenotyping experiment of hybrid rice varieties leads to associations with genetic determinants whose mode of action was revealed.
The auxin receptor TIR1 is an F-box protein functioning in a ubiquitin ligase complex to target repressors for degradation. It is itself an unstable protein, but newly identified mutations protect both TIR1 and its substrates from degradation. These mutations could help in identifying the substrates for hundreds of other F-box proteins.
The nitrate transporter NRT1.1 is a versatile plasma-membrane protein that mediates not only nitrate uptake in roots, but also nitrate sensing and signalling. A study of the structural features of NRT1.1 reveals how this protein can coordinate a range of physiological and morphological responses to nitrate.
