July 3, 2023

🌻 The Week in Botany July 3, 2023

It’s a grim week this week, with Gabriel Trujillo’s death on fieldwork making the headlines. It’s an unfortunate reminder to make sure of your safety if you’re going on fieldwork.

There is also the ongoing omnishambles that is Twitter happening. I’m writing this on Sunday, and there’s been three different moron-events since Friday. I particularly admired Twitter taking down Twitter with the Distributed Denial of Service attack aimed at their own site.

I’ll be away on holiday for the next week. There will be another email with you, probably at the same time next week. What it will look like is uncertain, because people will have trouble sharing stories on the site. There are also plenty of ways Musk can damage his site further before the next email is with you at the same time next week. Whatever happens, I’m sure it will be imaginative. Until next week, take care.

Alun (webmaster@botany.one)

On Botany One

Understanding How Fire-Adapted Plants Face Climate Change Through the Concept of “Modularity”
Chiminazzo and colleagues shed light on the intriguing survival strategies of woody plants in fire-prone ecosystems, using the Brazilian Cerrado as an example.

New Biosensor Reveals How Plants Respond to Drought Conditions
Innovative biosensor technology has shed light on how plants react to low humidity, revealing that the leaves signal the roots to grow and find water.

Small Furry Animals Influence Plant Species Size Diversity in Old Fields
Who knew herbivores could play favourites, subtly pushing for a plant world dominated by smaller species?

Traitor: Unleashing the Power of Automation for Studying Seed Traits
Are you using callipers and microscopes to measure seeds? Well, not anymore! Traitor comes to the rescue of seed scientists and technicians.

The Secret to Longer-lasting Roses Is Not to Hide Your Love in the Dark
Brighter light and a bit of sugar could be the formula for keeping your roses fresh for longer, as per new scientific findings.

The Queer Side Of Botany
To celebrate pride month, Botany One had a conversation with Sixto-Juan Zavala, founder of Queer Botany – an initiative aimed at connecting young members of the LGBTQ+ community with the plant world through botanical drawing, storytelling and walking in nature.

Grasslands Management Bolsters Pollinator Networks, Aiding Ecosystem Stability
Results-based agri-environmental payment schemes (RBAPSs) successfully boost plant diversity, nurture pollinator interactions, and fortify ecological stability in a new Irish study.

“Virtual Leaf” Unveils Hidden Realities of Plant Physiology
The ‘virtual leaf’ that simulates leaf physiology in 3D, promises breakthroughs in understanding plant responses to environmental changes and boosting our agricultural strategies.

Some seeds do better when they get eaten twice
A Hungarian study finds that plant seeds can benefit when their original carrier gets eaten by an owl.

News & Views

California Ph.D. student's research trip to Mexico ends in violent death: "He was in the wrong place"
For four years, Gabriel Trujillo trekked the breadth of the United States and south into Mexico in search of a flowering shrub called the common buttonbush. The research was tragically cut short last week in Mexico, where Trujillo's father said he was shot seven times. Authorities discovered his body on June 22 in the state of Sonora, in northwest Mexico, days after his fiancée reported him missing.

A California scholar's research into a flowering shrub took him to Mexico and a violent death
Gabriel Trujillo’s family says he was killed in Mexico during a research trip.

Where the flowers bloom: Secret garden in Wilmington, Del underway
Work is underway in Delaware to bring back a long abandoned part of American history. The pandemic halted the project. While the world shut down, plants that were dormant for more than a half-century started to bloom.

Still nurturing love and vines: the centenarian who built Barcelona’s first roof garden
When environmentalist and pacifist Joan Carulla came to the city after growing up during Spain’s civil war, he created an ‘allotment in the sky’ that helped pioneer organic farming.

Dozens of trees illegally hacked down in North Island protected conservation forests
A 600-year-old rimu is amongst the dozens of trees and shrubs illegally removed or hacked down in North Island protected conservation forests.

Gardens — and wildlife — do better with native plants
The Massachusetts landowner included in the June 22 Local Living article “Out with the lawn, in with the meadow” had laudable goals, but his initial attempts to create a meadow might have been more successful had he stuck with native plants. Instead, his first inclination was to remove them.

Turning over a new leaf, Colombian ranchers plant trees
In Colombia's southern Guaviare department, on the doorstep of the Amazon, cattle ranchers are engaged in a practice that belies their jungle-wrecking reputation. They plant trees.

Iraq plants mangrove forest to fight climate disaster
As Aymen al-Rubaye plants mangrove seedlings in the sprawling tidal flats of southern Iraq, the black smoke rising over the skyline behind him shows the ecological damage that he is toiling to undo.

Honeybees found to be less effective pollinators than native species
A pair of ecologists with the University of California has found that honeybees are not as good at pollinating flowers as native pollinators. In their study, reported in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, Dillon Travis and Joshua Kohn obtained samples of pollinated flowers in the wild and compared them to see how well they fared when pollinated by different types of pollinators.

AstraZeneca pledges to plant and maintain 200m trees globally by 2030
Drugmaker’s $4oom offsetting scheme aims to combat climate change and biodiversity loss caused by deforestation.

‘Mind-boggling’ palm that flowers and fruits underground thrills scientists
New species named Pinanga subterranea as Kew botanists admit they have no idea how its flowers are pollinated.

Tree Loss Increases in Crucial Tropical Forests
Deforestation rates appear “headed in the wrong direction” despite international pledges to halt destruction, according to an annual assessment.

Climate crisis threatens Caatinga’s plant biodiversity
Mario Moura discusses his recent article: Pervasive impacts of climate change on the woodiness and ecological generalism of dry forest plant assemblages. Find out more about the importance of long-term conservation planning for maintaining tropical dry forests.

Scientific Papers

Desmopsis terriflora, an extraordinary new species of Annonaceae with flagelliflory
Flagelliflory refers to the production of inflorescences exclusively on long, whip-like branches which emerge from the main trunk and extend along the ground or below it. It is the rarest type of cauliflory and only a few cases have been reported in the world. Here, a new species of Annonaceae with flagelliflory is described and illustrated.

The root of the problem: diverse vulnerability to xylem cavitation found within the root system of wheat plants
Harrison Day et al. used optical and X-ray imaging to capture xylem embolism propagation across the intact root systems of bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L. ‘Krichauff’) plants subjected to drying. Patterns in vulnerability to xylem cavitation were examined to investigate whether vulnerability may vary based on root size and placement across the entire root system.

Fifty Years of Fungicide Development, Deployment, and Future Use
Plant disease management has not significantly changed in the past 50 years, even as great strides have been made in the understanding of fungal biology and the etiology of plant disease. Issues of climate change, supply chain failures, war, political instability, and exotic invasives have created even more serious implications for world food and fiber security, and the stability of managed ecosystems, underscoring the urgency for reducing plant disease-related losses. Fungicides serve as the primary example of successful, widespread technology transfer, playing a central role in crop protection, reducing losses to both yield and postharvest spoilage.

A phloem-localized Arabidopsis metacaspase (AtMC3) improves drought tolerance
Combining genetic, proteomic and physiological approaches, Pitsili et al. investigated the role of AtMC3, a phloem-specific member of the metacaspase family, in osmotic stress responses in Arabidopsis thaliana. Analyses of the proteome in plants with altered AtMC3 levels revealed differential abundance of proteins related to osmotic stress pointing into a role of the protein in water-stress-related responses.

Next-generation ABACUS biosensors reveal cellular ABA dynamics driving root growth at low aerial humidity
The plant hormone abscisic acid (ABA) accumulates under abiotic stress to recast water relations and development. To overcome a lack of high-resolution sensitive reporters, Rowe et al. developed ABACUS2s—next-generation Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) biosensors for ABA with high affinity, signal-to-noise ratio and orthogonality—that reveal endogenous ABA patterns in Arabidopsis thaliana.

ELONGATED HYPOCOTYL 5 regulates BRUTUS and affects iron acquisition and homeostasis in Arabidopsis thaliana
Mankotia et al. report that HY5 (Elongated Hypocotyl 5), a member of the basic leucine zipper (bZIP) family of TFs, plays an important role in the Fe-deficiency signaling pathway in Arabidopsis thaliana. The hy5 mutant failed to mount optimum Fe-deficiency responses, and displayed root growth defects under Fe-limitation.

♻️ Developing drought-smart, ready-to-grow future crops
This review examines recent advances in plant responses to drought stress (DS) to expand our understanding of DS-associated mechanisms. Suboptimal water sources adversely affect crop growth and yields through physical impairments, physiological disturbances, biochemical modifications, and molecular adjustments.

Clermontia hanaulaensis (Campanulaceae, Lobelioideae), a new, critically endangered species from Maui, Hawaiian Islands
Clermontia hanaulaensis H.Oppenheimer, Lorence & W.L.Wagner, sp. nov., a newly discovered, narrowly distributed endemic species, is herein described based on its morphological characteristics and illustrated with field photos and a line drawing. It is currently known only from the slopes of Hana‘ula, in Pōhākea Gulch, Mauna Kahālāwai, west Maui, Hawaiian Islands.

Plasmodesmata mediate cell-to-cell transport of brassinosteroid hormones
Wang et al. demonstrate that plasmodesmata (PD) mediate the passage of brassinosteroids (BRs) between neighboring cells. Intracellular BR content, in turn, is capable of modulating PD permeability to optimize its own mobility, thereby manipulating BR biosynthesis and signaling.

Hiding in plain sight: The underground palm Pinanga subterranea
The production of flowers and fruit below ground (geoflory and geocarpy, respectively) is a paradoxical reproductive strategy that seemingly hinders pollination and dispersal. Though rare, these phenomena occur in 33 angiosperm families. Plants that flower and fruit entirely below ground are exceptionally unusual. Pinanga subterranea (Arecaceae), a species new to science from Borneo, is the first member of the palm family recorded to flower and fruit almost exclusively below ground.

Phase separation-based visualization of protein­–protein interactions and kinase activities in plants
Safi et al. generated and exploited the SYnthetic Multivalency in PLants (SYMPL)-vector set to assay protein–protein interactions (PPIs) (SPPIER - Separation of Phases-based Protein Interaction Reporter) and kinase activities (SPARK - Separation of Phases-based Activity Reporter of Kinase) in planta, based on phase separation. This technology enabled easy detection of inducible, binary and ternary protein–protein interactions among cytoplasmic and nuclear proteins in plant cells via a robust image-based readout.

Statistical methods to identify mechanisms in studies of eco-evolutionary dynamics
Pantel and Becks discuss recent advances in eco-evolutionary modeling and statistical methods and discuss challenges for fitting mechanistic models to eco-evolutionary data.

Phytophthora sojae boosts host trehalose accumulation to acquire carbon and initiate infection
Zhu et al. show that P. sojae boosts trehalose biosynthesis in soybean through the virulence activity of an effector PsAvh413. PsAvh413 interacts with soybean trehalose-6-phosphate synthase 6 (GmTPS6) and increases its enzymatic activity to promote trehalose accumulation. P. sojae directly acquires trehalose from the host and exploits it as a carbon source to support primary infection and development in plant tissue.

Africa as an evolutionary arena for large fruits
Wölke et al. assembled global phylogenetic, distribution and fruit size data for palms (Arecaceae), a pantropical, vertebrate-dispersed family with > 2600 species, and integrated these with data on extinction-driven body size reduction in mammalian frugivore assemblages since the Late Quaternary. They applied evolutionary trait, linear and null models to identify the selective pressures that have shaped fruit sizes

Careers

Full or Associate Professorship in Molecular Biology of Plants 50-100 %, Zurich
We are seeking candidates in the field of plant molecular biology interested in understanding fundamental, mechanistic aspects of plant growth, development, or the interaction of plants with their environment. The professor is expected to develop a vibrant and internationally competitive research group, utilizing cutting-edge technologies to address major biological questions in any relevant plant species.

Blog Editor – Journal of Ecology, Remote working
We are looking for an active ecologist with a passion for stimulating dialogue and communicating research to help grow the blog, and lead on commissioning, editing and publishing scientifically robust, high-quality content.

UAV Mapping Technician, Newcastle, UK
You will underpin new mapping activities, contributing to understanding of local seagrass and sand dune ecosystems, and invasive species research with the WADER project team (EU LIFE Programme -https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/life/publicWebsite/project/details/5689 (NAT/UK/000277), and identifying the flood resilience potential of kelp and seagrass habitats in the Environment Agency funded Stronger Shores project (https://engageenvironmentagency.uk.engagementhq.com/sot018-stronger-shores). You will support data collection and analysis, developing novel monitoring methods, and working collaboratively with staff and students to deliver this important research. The role is fixed term for 18 months (fulltime or agreed part-time equivalent) in the first instance but opportunities to support further research and teaching projects is encouraged.

Senior Botanical Research Technician, Newcastle, UK
We are seeking a motivated and enthusiastic individual, with research experience to support an Innovate UK Smart Grants project combining imaging, spore sensing and robotics to improve precision application of fungicide and bio-pesticides. This will be carried out on campus, at Nafferton and Cockle Park farms and at other off site locations.

PhD Studentship: Genetic Engineering of Transgenic Barley Lines to Investigate Root Angle Regulation, Nottingham
As a successful candidate, you will be actively involved in a project that focuses on investigating the role of a gene encoding Tubby and F-box domain-containing protein in the transcriptional and post-translational regulation of downstream targets. Your responsibilities will include designing and cloning various plasmids, preparing destination vectors, performing agrobacterium-mediated transformation of immature embryos, confirming positive transformants using PCR and microscopy-based techniques, and generating transgenic barley lines.

Research Assistant, Norwich
The post-holder will apply their knowledge and experience of crop breeding to developing new experimental research populations, run field trials and complete experimental work, predominantly working with Brassica oleracea and Brassica napus. The post-holder will be responsible for large experiments and will gain experience in working in large collaborative projects.

Postdoctoral Research Associate, Edinburgh
This position is part of the Darwin Tree of Life project to document the genomes of all British and Irish species. The post holder will conduct bioinformatic analyses to understand genomic variation from new and emerging high quality reference genomes for diverse plant species.

Head Position in Biology, Suzhou
The position of Head of Department [HoD] is crucial to the effective operation of XJTLU. Departments are the fundamental building blocks of the School and University, and the Head is a critically important communication link between the School and University and the individual members of academic staff. The HoD is responsible to the Dean of their School and the Vice President for Academic Affairs for the entire operation and performance of the department and the professional behaviour of each individual member of staff. The HoD is a key leader, manager, and administrator without whom the university cannot function.

Postdoctoral Research Associate (Grade 7), Liverpool
The research group of Professor Luning Liu (www.luningliu.org) is looking for an experienced Postdoctoral Research Associate to lead a Leverhulme Trust funded project on synthetic engineering of bacterial CO₂-concentrating mechanisms into crop chloroplasts to improve photosynthetic CO₂ fixation and plant growth. You will have the opportunity to develop interdisciplinary skills in synthetic biology, molecular biology, biochemistry, plant engineering and physiology, and to be involved in world-class research and networking on enhancing plant photosynthesis and crop yields to address grand challenges.

Lecturer in Biology (Teaching and Scholarship), Cardiff
A position is available for a fixed-term maternity cover position as Lecturer in Biology on the Teaching and Scholarship career pathway to join our dedicated team of academic staff in the School of Biosciences. The specific Biological areas that need to be covered are Plant Science (whole organism through to molecular), Organic Chemistry and Enzyme Kinetics.

Research Scientist, California
Under the general direction of the Principal Investigator under the NASA ARC-CREST Cooperative Agreement, the Research Scientist is responsible for conducting scientific research, processing and analyzing UAV and satellite data, publishing scientific papers, and developing proposals for new research activities. Project focus: remote sensing of agricultural lands, with an emphasis on plant pathogens in strawberries, lettuce and other high value specialty crops. The main objective of the research is to apply data from remote sensing instruments on UAVs and satellites in combination with field data to identify the presence of plant pathogens and develop models to forecast crop yields. This post-doctoral position is within the Water, Agriculture, Technology and Remote Sensing (WATRS) lab and will work closely with scientists at NASA Ames Research Center. The successful candidate will also have the opportunity to develop and lead innovative research on remote sensing applications for detection of plant pathogens.

Research Fellow (Plant Nanotechnology), Singapore
Postdoctoral positions (Research Fellows) are available immediately in the Lew Lab led by Assistant Professor Tedrick Thomas Salim LEW at the Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering at the National University of Singapore (NUS). The National University of Singapore is consistently ranked as the top university in Asia and among the highest ranked institutions globally. Research in the Lew Laboratory focuses on engineering innovative nanoparticle-based technologies to efficiently deliver proteins and biomolecules for plant engineering, and to monitor plant signalling pathways non-destructively (Lew et al, Nat Plants 2020; Kwak & Lew et al, Nat Nanotech 2019). Candidates will be exposed to a rich and exciting training environment at the emerging field of plant nanotechnology.