Plant genetics

Plant genetics deals with heredity in plants, specifically mechanisms of hereditary transmission and variation of inherited characteristics. Plant genetics differs from animal genetics in a number of ways: somatic mutations can contribute to the germ line more easily as flowers develop at the end of branches composed of somatic cells; polyploidy is more common; and plants additionally contain chloroplastic DNA.

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    Mutations in two single genes (AtPS1 and AtJAS) in Arabidopsis thaliana are individually sufficient to restore haploid male fertility with no effect on haploid female fertility. Genes restoring haploid male fertility can bypass laborious and resource-intensive chemical methods, thereby markedly increasing the efficiency of doubled haploid (DH) technology to accelerate crop breeding.

    Nature Plants, 1-2

  • News & Views |

    Analysis of cambial development in the tree Populus trichocarpa reveals how a zinc-finger transcription factor, Populus trichocarpa VASCULAR CAMBIUM-SPECIFIC 2 (PtrVCS2), controls the rate of cell proliferation by changing the dynamics of histone acetylation at the Populus trichocarpa WUSCHEL-RELATED HOMEOBOX4a (PtrWOX4a) promoter.

    • Ykä Helariutta
    •  & Melis Kucukoglu Topcu
    Nature Plants 9, 7-8

  • News & Views |

    The long and trailing vines of most cucurbits represent an undomesticated trait that hampers dense planting and yields, and also incurs a high labour cost. A targeted artificial evolution strategy was developed to suppress stem elongation of cucurbits in a dose-dependent manner, thereby enhancing yield and reducing labour costs.

    • Nai-Qian Dong
    •  & Hong-Xuan Lin
    Nature Plants 8, 1335-1336
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