Articles

The regulatory pathway associated with crop yield remains poorly understood. Now researchers have found that blocking miR396 dramatically increases rice grain yield by inducing the GRF6 gene and subsequently activating the auxin pathway and development-related genes.

Central carbon metabolism in cyanobacteria consists of the CBB cycle, glycolysis, the pentose phosphate pathway and the TCA cycle. Metabolic analyses of mutant and wild-type Synechocystis reveal the presence of a functional phosphoketolase pathway, previously uncharacterized in photosynthetic organisms.

How spiral flowers produce organs in variable numbers remains elusive. By studying Nigella damascena, scientists now illuminate the genetic programs that specify floral organ identity and determine the flexibility of organ numbers in spiral flowers.

In the Brassica self-incompatibility (SI) response, the downstream signalling network of ARC1 E3 ubiquitin ligase remains elusive. Now, glyoxalase I is shown to be an ARC1-targted compatibility factor whose degradation leads to the SI response.

Dinitrogen fixation by plants is a major source of new nitrogen to land ecosystems. Climatic constraints on the nitrogen cycle can explain biome-scale differences in the abundance of nitrogen fixing trees, according to an analysis of the ecological and evolutionary conditions under which different fixation strategies emerge.

Double fertilization in flowering plants produces both the embryo and the endosperm that is going to nourish it, forming a seed. Development of the endosperm is triggered by auxin production, derepressed by an epigenetic pathway after fertilization.

To ensure efficient photosynthesis the flow of electrons through the two photosystems in the chloroplast must be carefully balanced. This paper shows that LHCI mediates interactions between LHCII peripheral to the core and the PSI supercomplex.

When damaged by excess light the core proteins of photosystem II are repaired by selective degradation by the protease FtsH. Increased degradation after removal of outer subunits, suggests that protease accessibility identifies proteins as damaged.

Manganese is an essential metal for plant growth. A series of laboratory experiments suggest that metal tolerance protein 9 (MTP9), a member of the cation diffusion facilitator family, is required for manganese translocation, and thereby uptake, in rice.

The ppGpp-dependent control of cell activities, namely the stringent response, has been elusive in eukaryotes. Arabidopsis mutant analysis now shows that plant stringent response controls organelle function and contributes to systematic growth.

The model and geographic location(s) of Asian rice domestication has been a controversial topic. Now a reanalysis of a previously published large genomic dataset, supports three geographically separate domestications of Asian rice.

Circadian clocks regulate many biological processes. The authors show the existence of two decentralized tissue-specific clocks: one in the vasculature for photoperiodic control of flowering, one in the epidermis for temperature-dependant elongation.

The viral hypersensitivity of Nicotiana benthamiana results from an insertion in the RNA polymerase, Rdr1. Population analyses showed that the Rdr1 insertion originated from a population that trades viral defence for vigour in an extreme Australian habitat.

Morphogenesis needs cellular polarity. In root hair cells initiation, ROPs, DRPs and PIP5K3 are recruited in bulging sterol-enriched membrane domains. A lipid-binding AGC kinase called D6PK modulates this establishment of planar cell polarity.

Wood is the main terrestrial biotic reservoir for long-term carbon sequestration. High-resolution cellular-based measurements of wood formation dynamics in coniferous forests in northeastern France suggest that woody biomass production lags stem-girth expansion by over a month

Plant survival is greatly impaired when oxygen levels are limiting, such as during flooding events. A series of laboratory experiments with Arabidopsis thaliana suggests that the universal stress protein HRU1 coordinates oxygen sensing with ROS signalling under anoxic conditions.

NLPs are immunogenic patterns present in three kingdoms of life. The authors identify the leucin-rich repeat membrane protein RLP23 as the NLP receptor in Arabidopsis. Expression of RLP23 in potato enhances immunity against pathogenic microbes.

Predictions suggest that a high proportion of plant species will be threatened with extinction in the near future. A global assessment of the threat status of cacti suggests that these iconic plants are amongst the most threatened taxonomic groups, with 31% of the 1,478 evaluated species at risk of extinction.

The frequency of severe droughts is increasing in many regions around the world as a result of climate change. An analysis of tree growth and mortality data from forests worldwide suggests that large trees fare worse under drought than small trees.

RSL4 is a transcription factor synthesized during a 4-hour pulse at the initiation of the root hair elongation phase, and then degraded by the proteasome. Low phosphate conditions increase the length of the pulse, resulting in longer root hair.