Новости науки и практики // Август 2019

Relationship between duration of cell differentiation and xylem traits

Buttò et al. verified the hypothesis that cell diameter and cell wall thickness are positively correlated with the duration of their differentiation phases.

https://www.botany.one/2019/07/relationship-between-duration-of-cell-differentiation-and-xylem-traits/

Hormone-metabolic interactions in adventitious roots

Findings support a new system-oriented concept that the phytohormone-controlled reprogramming and differentiation of particular responsive cells in the cutting base interacts with a co-ordinated reallocation of plant resources within the whole cutting to initiate and drive excision-induced adventitious root formation.

https://www.botany.one/2019/07/hormone-metabolic-interactions-in-adventitious-roots/

A novel Ca2+-binding protein that can rapidly transduce auxin responses during root growth

Here report that in Arabidopsis roots, auxin elicits specific Ca2+ signaling patterns that spatially coincide with the expression pattern of auxin-regulated genes.

https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.3000085

A scientific approach to recreate metabolic evolution in plants

It is methodological development that the research team successfully identified the newly generated substances by detecting the changes in metabolites before and after introducing the gene, which is a challenging task given that plants usually contain several thousands of metabolites.

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2019-08/cu-asa073119.php

Finding of STEMIN (stem cell inducing factor) for feasible reprogramming in plants

Research group aimed to understand molecular mechanisms underlying stem cell formation by using the moss Physcomitrella patens. In screening for factors involved in stem cell formation succeeded in identifying a gene encoding a transcription factor that changes leaf cells into stem cells without wounding signals, thus leading to formation of protonemata. "This gene was named STEMIN1 (STEM CELL-INDUCING FACTOR 1)".

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2019-07/nion-fos071019.php

Researchers can finally modify plant mitochondrial DNA

In plants, a type of male sterility called cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS) has been attributed to certain mitochondrial genes, but none of these genes has been validated by direct mitochondrial gene-targeted modification. Here, we knocked out CMS-associated genes (orf79 and orf125) of CMS varieties of rice and rapeseed, respectively, using transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs) with mitochondria localization signals (mitoTALENs). We demonstrate that knocking out these genes cures male sterility, strongly suggesting that these genes are causes of CMS.

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2019-07/uot-rcf070319.php

Algae living inside fungi: How land plants first evolved

New research presents evidence that algae could have piggybacked on fungi to leave the water and to colonize the land, over 500 million years ago.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190723163943.htm

«Дремлющие» растения помогут сохранить электричество

Расходы на электроэнергию в теплицах можно уменьшить, если использовать в них пульсирующее освещение.

https://www.nkj.ru/news/36617/

Plants don't think, they grow: The case against plant consciousness

If a tree falls, and no one's there to hear it, does it feel pain and loneliness? No, experts argue in an opinion article publishing on July 3 in the journal Trends in Plant Science. They draw this conclusion from recent research which explores the evolution of consciousness through comparative studies of simple and complex animal brains.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190703121448.htm

Как растения защищаются от солнца

Избыток фотонов включает в клетках растений и зеленых водорослей специальный фотозащитный белок, защищающий их от «солнечных ожогов».

https://www.nkj.ru/news/31802/

Physicists develop model that describes length growth in biological systems

One of science's unsolved puzzles is that concerning the growth of biological systems. Whether it's a microscopic protozoa or a blue whale, all living systems grow. Physicists have now discovered a mechanism that could well provide a means to explain this mystery. They have developed a mathematical model that offers a precise explanation of growth in biological systems.

https://journals.aps.org/pre/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevE.99.050401

Открыт хищный родственник красных водорослей

Описан новый род одноклеточных организмов, которые являются ближайшими родственниками красных водорослей, но совершенно не похожи на них по образу жизни: это хищные жгутиконосцы, успевшие вторично утратить способность к фотосинтезу. По всей вероятности, это означает, что общие предки красных водорослей и зеленых растений были одноклеточными хищниками, которые даже после приобретения хлоропластов долго сохраняли смешанный тип питания.

https://elementy.ru/novosti_nauki/433511/Otkryt_khishchnyy_rodstvennik_krasnykh_vodorosley#forum

How plants perceive salt

High salt levels in the soil harm plant growth and limit crop yields. A salt-binding membrane lipid has been identified as being essential for salt perception and for triggering calcium signals that lead to salt tolerance.

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-02289-x

The missing link in jasmonic acid biosynthesis

Jasmonic acid biosynthesis starts in chloroplasts and is finalized in peroxisomes. The required export of a crucial intermediate out of the chloroplast is now shown to be mediated by a protein from the outer envelope called JASSY.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41477-019-0492-y

Evolution of fast root gravitropism in seed plants

Work demonstrates how root anatomical innovation, combined with the evolution of PIN auxin transporters, led to the evolution of the seed plant root to become a delicate and efficient organ to mediate fast gravitropism, which might have facilitated their adaption to the new environment along with numerous other evolved traits (e.g., hydrotropism and other growth behaviors).

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-019-11471-8

Regulation of stomatal opening and histone modification by photoperiod in Arabidopsis thaliana

Researchers showed that photoperiodic flowering components have positive effects on light-induced stomatal opening in Arabidopsis thaliana.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-46440-0

Salicylic acid-independent responses in PI4K mutants

Data illustrate the influence of SA (salicylic acid) on other phytohormone levels.

https://www.botany.one/2019/07/salicylic-acid-independent-responses-in-pi4k-mutants/

Seeds of life: The plants suited to climate change

Experts at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, selected 11 seeds from plants and trees that may be better suited to climate change than other species.  Using a scanning electron microscope, artist Rob Kesseler created striking colourised images of the seeds in extraordinary detail.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/extra/HVJMVYKmjp/seeds-of-life