🌻 The Week in Botany December 9, 2024
Storm Darragh has come ripping through the British Isles this week, to remind everyone winter is on its way. Getting into Oxford this morning should be interesting, as one of the major routes in is blocked after a tree escaped from Oxford Brookes University.
A news item this week that got a lot of shares on one network is that Altmetric have expanded their tracking to include Bluesky. This should give people a better idea of how Twitter is or isn’t declining as they’ll have a better cross-section of shares on social media than I see.
It’s late, and I have just been summoned by the cat to bed, so I’ll end writing the introduction here. There’ll be another collection of the botanical stories and papers you’re sharing on Mastodon, Bluesky, Threads and Twitter next week. Until next week, take care.
Alun (webmaster@botany.one)
On Botany One
Exploring the Impact of Plant Traits on Nitrogen Use Efficiency in Maize
Researchers use a functional-structural plant model to analyze how architectural and physiological traits affect nitrogen uptake and physiological efficiency.
The Fig and Wasp Mutualism Under the Microscope
Explore the complex mutualistic relationship between figs and wasps that supports rich diversity in tropical rainforests.
Fire, Heat, and Light Shape the Survival of Seeds in Brazil’s Rocky Ecosystems
Plants in Brazil’s rocky landscapes have evolved remarkable seed traits that help them survive harsh conditions, responding to light, temperature, and fire to thrive in these ecosystems.
Drawings Put into Evidence the Lack of Plant Awareness in College Students
Europe’s Plants Face Crisis as Their Seed Dispersers Decline
Paramotoring at the Frontier of Botanical Knowledge in the Peruvian Desert
News & Views
‬Why does it matter if plants go extinct?
Plants are really important for all life on Earth. They make up habitats for animals, provide food, and are even used for our medicines. But 45% of all known flowering plants in the world are potentially threatened with extinction, according to research carried out by scientists at London's Kew Gardens.
Over 200 fruit trees planted to feed elephants in Telupid forest
The Community Elephant Ranger Team (CERT), through the Human-Elephant Harmony Project, recently organized the Integrated Forest Garden Project in Tawai Forest Reserve, involving the planting of fruit trees as a sustainable food source for elephants.
Kew Gardens digitising eight million plant samples
Specialists at Kew Gardens are digitising its entire archive of eight million dried plant specimens, including some picked by the naturalist and biologist Charles Darwin.
An Incredible Story of Scientific Questing, Botany and Danger on the Colorado River
This is a science adventure story. Take a wild journey down the Colorado River in the company of two pioneering botanists: Elzada Clover and Lois Jotter.
Soil health is big business, but KU researchers say many fungal products don't work as promised
There’s no shortage of products designed to grow beneficial fungi that will help your crops or garden. Whether they actually do that, though, is a different matter.
‪@celialj.bsky.social‬
Study: Warming has accelerated due to the Earth absorbing more sunlight
2023 was always going to be a hot year, given that warmer El Niño conditions were superimposed on the long-term trend of climate change driven by our greenhouse gas emissions. But it's not clear anybody was expecting the striking string of hot months that allowed the year to easily eclipse any previous year on record. As the warmth has continued at record levels even after the El Niño faded, it's an event that seems to demand an explanation.
Why the Forest Service is encouraging people to cut Christmas trees on public lands (with permits)
When it comes to finding the perfect Christmas tree, William Lyon has it down to a science.
Garden lights aim to show trees in a 'different way'
The garden's Prof Beverley Glover said they were aiming to "show the garden in a different way" and highlight the how trees support different ecosystems.
Silicon-Carbon Trade-Off in the Epidermis of Sedges
The variation in foliar Si concentrations between species worldwide is so large that we cannot help but wonder why!
@martinjhodson.bsky.social‬
Fossil Forest, Dorset: England's 145 million-year-old tree stump fossils preserved by ancient microbes
The Fossil Forest in Dorset is a stretch of southern English coastline peppered with living mounds of limestone that hide the remains of cypress trees from the late Jurassic period.
@mostlymammoths.bsky.social‬
Scientific Papers
Ectomycorrhizal fungi of Douglas-fir retain newly assimilated carbon derived from neighboring European beech (OA)
Audisio et al find that recently assimilated C transferred belowground is shared among fungi colonizing tree roots but not among trees. In mixed forests with beech and Douglas-fir, the links for C movement might be hampered due to low mycorrhizal overlap with consequences for soil C cycling.
GasanalyzeR: advancing reproducible research using a new R package for photosynthesis data workflows (OA)
The R package "gasanalyzer" helps scientists analyse photosynthesis data more effectively and consistently. While different measurement devices use varying methods to calculate photosynthesis-related variables, this software package standardises these calculations and allows researchers to easily check how reliable their results are.
Permafrost instability negates the positive impact of warming temperatures on boreal radial growth ($)
Alfaro-Sánchez et al found reduced tree growth since the 1980s at southern latitudes and increased growth at higher, colder latitudes, at least until the 2000s. Their results showed that recent permafrost warming at the highest latitudes, where permafrost is more prevalent in the landscape, has caused significant stress in tree growth due to ground destabilization.
An orphan gene BOOSTER enhances photosynthetic efficiency and plant productivity (OA)
Genome-wide association studies of non-photochemical quenching parameters in 743 Populus trichocarpa accessions identified a nuclear-encoded genomic region associated with variation in photosynthesis under fluctuating light. The identified gene, BOOSTER (BSTR), comprises three exons, two with apparent endophytic origin and the third containing a large fragment of plastid-encoded Rubisco large subunit.
@jamespblloyd.bsky.social‬
Root cap cell corpse clearance limits microbial colonization in Arabidopsis thaliana (OA)
This study investigated the involvement of programmed cell death (PCD) in Arabidopsis thaliana root cap cells and its effect on microbial colonization. The authors have reported the importance of timely corpse clearance in the root cap and a root cap-specific transcription factor in controlling microbial colonization by beneficial fungi.
The pace of life for forest trees ($)
The maximum size, growth rate, and lifespan of trees determines the rate of forest carbon accumulation. These life history traits are thought to be correlated, but studies have been limited to local scales in tropical systems. Bialic-Murphy et al. used data on tree size and status from over 1000 species across North, Central, and South America to show that these relationships are more complex.
A female-specific RdDM-associated element guides de novo DNA methylation during rice gametophyte development (OA)
Kim et al show that high expression of 24-nucleotide small interfering RNAs (24-nt siRNAs) leads to incremental CHH methylation at specific loci via the RNA-directed DNA methylation (RdDM) pathway during female gametophyte development in rice.
@psaima.bsky.social‬
The leucine-rich repeat receptor kinase QSK1 regulates PRR-RBOHD complexes targeted by the bacterial effector HopF2Pto (OA)
To elucidate the intricate dynamics of the PRR-RBOHD complex, we conducted a comparative coimmunoprecipitation analysis using EFR, FLS2, and RBOHD in Arabidopsis thaliana.
A Functional Basis for the Assembly of Australian Subtropical Rainforest Tree Communities ($)
Understanding the role of climate in the assembly of rainforest tree communities is informative for predicting how future climates will impact species and communities. Redford-Smith et al. surveyed rainforest tree communities across the Australian subtropics (spanning 600 to 2500 mm rainfall year−1) and measured functional traits on 285 (91%) of all recorded species.
Cortical microtubules act as a template to organize nano-scale patterning of exocytosis (OA)
Lindeboom et al show that the SEC/MUNC protein KEULE is a dynamic marker for individual secretory events and employ it as a live cell probe, that together with high-precision image analysis of thousands of events, reveal that cortical microtubule arrays act as two-dimensional templates that pattern exocytosis at the nano-scale in higher plant cells.
@aribidopsis.bsky.social‬
Source vs sink limitations on tree growth: from physiological mechanisms to evolutionary constraints and terrestrial carbon cycle implications (OA)
Trugman & Anderegg highlight evolutionary restrictions on the magnitude of sink limitation at the organismal level. They also detail where mechanisms regulating sink limitation at the organismal and ecosystem scale (e.g. the terrestrial carbon sink) diverge.
In AoBC Publications
Careers
Note: These are posts that have been advertised around the web. They are not posts that I personally offer, nor can I arrange the visa for you to work internationally.
Herbarium Collections Manager, Cambridge
The Collections Manager will be point of contact for all visitors to the Herbarium, including researchers and members of the public, facilitating use of the collections for research, teaching and outreach purposes. They will respond to and manage requests for loans and samples of Herbarium materials in a timely fashion. They will support fundraising, assist in writing grant applications to trusts and foundations, and in developing relationships with potential donors (with the support of CUDAR and the Department of Plant Sciences).
Technical Research Officer, Reading
The University of Reading is seeking a highly motivated Technical Research Officer to join the Sustainable Land Management team at the University of Reading. In this role, you will manage and maintain the Free-Air Diesel and Ozone Enrichment (FADOE) platform (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mex.2024.102635), supporting groundbreaking research on air pollution's effects on plant-insect interactions.
Preserved Collections Manager, Kew
This position offers an opportunity to play a key role in Kew’s large and globally important science collections. Reporting to the Head of Collections, the post holder provides leadership and oversight to the Preserved Collections (Herbarium Collections Management Unit, Spirit, Fungarium and DNA and Tissue Collections) to develop and maintain high standards in the management of Kew’s internationally important collections. This is a vital role in the management of collections that is necessary to meet statutory obligations, sector standards and to ensure compliance with national and international legislation.
PhD position in plant science with a focus on cell wall dynamics, Umeå
Umeå University is seeking a motivated PhD student to join the "Watchers on the Wall" project, which investigates the crucial role of plant cell walls in the early stages of immune responses. Your research will focus on uncovering the connection between changes in cell wall mechanics/composition and the activation of plant defense pathways.
Assistant Professor, Wisconsin
The Department of Biology at UW-River Falls seeks a biologist with a background in Botany to support their Biological Sciences program Including Ecology & Organismal and General Biology curricula. Teaching responsibilities will include lecture and laboratory courses in Botany, Identification of Plants, and General Biology.
Assistant Professor Of Crop Resilience, Wisconsin
The Department of Plant & Agroecosystem Sciences at University of Wisconsin-Madison invites applications for a tenure-track faculty position at the rank of Assistant Professor in the area of Crop Resilience. The successful candidate will develop an innovative and extramurally funded research program in crop physiology, focused on plant-environment interactions.