š» The Week in Botany June 26, 2023
Itās another mixed week. Twitter continues to decline. I think some of that is the effect of summer, but I donāt remember views dropping so much before. One of the problems we identified before the Musk takeover of Twitter is that time spent collating and posting news to Twitter is time weāre not spending working on Botany One. After finding plenty of ways that donāt work, we now have News in Brief. The change means that thereāll be some coverage of papers that might otherwise go unnoticed.
This week I particularly liked the posts on how plants build flowers for pollinators, and whether a plant smells better in the light or dark. Next week we have news of a Traitor in plant science, and how to keep your cut roses fresher for longer.
If you have anything you want mentioned in next weekās newsletter, itās better to send it early this week. Iām planning to take the first week in July off. Iād like to get the newsletter written on a Friday afternoon as it would be nice to take the weekend off as well. However it works out, the newsletter will be with you around the same time next week. Until then, take care.
Alun (webmaster@botany.one)
On Botany One
Pulling apart the many chromosomes of Rhododendron to improve conservation
Hu and team reveal a rich diversity of chromosome counts in the Rhododendron genus, potentially reshaping understanding of species diversification and offering crucial insights for biodiversity conservation.
Modifier Genes Challenge Traditional Views of Self-Incompatibility Breakdown
In the world of plants, love is complex, and new research reveals a surprising twist in how some plants overcome their self-incompatibility to self-fertilise.
Photo Vouchers Proposed as an Alternative to Traditional Herbarium Specimens
Researchers propose digital photo vouchers as an innovative way to democratise plant data collection and boost efficiency in ethnobotanical research.
Discovering the Plantsā Sense of Smell: The Role of Stomata in the Ability to Detect Olfactory Signals
Plants are known to emit sounds and respond to light changes in their surroundings. Now, a recent study suggests they can perceive organic compounds present in the air, resembling animalsā sense of smell.
How Wheat Outsmarts Drought
Scientists reveal how wheatās unique hydraulic system can cleverly reroute water supply to safeguard its reproduction during severe water shortages.
The Hidden Impact of Climate Change on Seagrass Meadows
As climate change narrows seagrass habitats, a surprising twist emerges ā the rise of unique species, challenging our understanding of biodiversity and conservation strategies.
iPhenology Explores Climate Change Impact Turning Smartphones into Scientific Insights on Plant Phenology
Discover how iPhenology, can use citizen science photo observations, revolutionizing plant phenology research and predicting the impact of climate change on natureās timing.
Building Flowers for Pollinators: Does Every Flower Really Have Its Perfect Match?
Flowers and their pollinators are highly diverse. So, what determines the characteristics of flowers and their visitors?
Climate Change Creates a Complex Battlefield for Native and Exotic Plant Species
As the climate warms, shifts in temperature and water availability, affects competition and interaction among native and exotic plant species in Southern British Columbia.
What happens to a plantās seeds when its seed dispersers have dispersed?
Despite the apparent abundance of fruit, the Monoon liukiuense tree on Iriomote Island is at risk due to inefficient seed dispersal, as revealed in research by Ryo Furumoto.
News & Views
Rare plants flowering for only time in Devon after 10 years
Three plants which have taken more than 10 years to flower are currently in bloom at a garden in Devon.
Government thinks its climate policy is planting too many trees
The [New Zealand] Government isnāt happy that its key climate policy is planting oodles of carbon-absorbing trees instead of driving clean energy.
Prestigious Rose Breeder Names Its New Bloom for a Black Gardener
For more than 60 years, David Austin Roses has named new varieties after historical British figures, all of them white. The Dannahue, which honors Danny Clarke, changed that.
Why mosses are superheroes of the plant world
Vilified as the scourge of perfect lawns, these tiny plants fight air pollution and keep soils healthy.
National pollinator strategy needed to save Canada's wild bees, say researchers
Canada's wild pollinators are in decline and without a national pollinator plan, many species could be heading for extinction, like the endangered rusty-patched bumblebee or the American bumblebee, say researchers at York University.
The New and Improved Secret Language of Flowers
The New Yorker updates the secret language of flowers for the 21st Century.
Once a junkyard, this L.A. garden is a healing āaltarā for survivors of violent crime
Walking into the Survivors Healing Garden on 108th Street, just blocks from Watts Towers, Oya Sherrills radiates calm as she stops to pick up trash that has blown in from the Union Pacific railroad tracks nearby.
Year-round gardening: Importance of understanding basic botany
If youāve tried to identify a plant using a botanical key, it can be a daunting process, full of unfamiliar terms. Gardeners can wonder, āWhy is it important to understand botany?ā
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.
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 Hanaāula, in PÅhÄkea Gulch, Mauna KahÄlÄwai, west Maui, Hawaiian Islands.
Combining multiplex gene editing and doubled haploid technology in maize
Impens et al. describe the design and validation of a rapid and efficient strategy to produce lines of genetically identical plants carrying various combinations of homozygous edits, suitable for replicated analysis of phenotypical differences.
Reconciling fossils with phylogenies reveals the origin and macroevolutionary processes explaining the global cycad biodiversity
Coiro et al. show the benefits of integrating fossils into phylogenies to estimate ancestral areas of origin and to study evolutionary processes explaining the global distribution of present-day relict groups.
ā»ļø The Red List for the endemic trees of Colombia: Effective conservation targeted for plants required in biodiversity hotspots
Colombia has a very rich tree flora and high levels of tree endemism. As a contribution to the āGlobal Tree Assessmentā, Lopez-Gallego and Morales-Morales assessed 860 species to complete the Red List of the 1148 endemic trees of the country. The information is being used to support spatial conservation planning as Key Biodiversity Areas identification.
Why did glutamate, GABA, and melatonin become intercellular signalling molecules in plants?
Caspi et al. review the plant function of three highly studied animal intercellular signalling molecules, namely glutamate, Ī³-aminobutyric acid (GABA), and melatonin. By considering both their signalling function in plants and their broader physiological function, they suggest that molecules with an original function as key metabolites or active participants in reactive ion species scavenging have a high chance of becoming intercellular signalling molecules.
Root cap is an important determinant of rhizosphere microbiome assembly
RĆ¼ger et al.ās results indicate a central role of root caps in microbiome assembly with ripple-on effects affecting higher trophic levels and microbiome composition on older root zones.
ā»ļø Intraspecific trait variation in plants: a renewed focus on its role in ecological processes
Investigating the causes and consequences of intraspecific trait variation (ITV) in plants is not novel, as it has long been recognized that such variation shapes biotic and abiotic interactions. While evolutionary and population biology have extensively investigated ITV, only in the last 10 years has interest in ITV surged within community and comparative ecology. Despite this recent interest, still lacking are thorough descriptions of ITVās extent, the spatial and temporal structure of ITV, and stronger connections between ITV and community and ecosystem properties.
Why is FERONIA pleiotropic?
Mailvert and Hamant propose that the contribution of FERONIA in monitoring turgor-dependent cell wall tension may explain its pleiotropy.
Ecological restoration in the age of apocalypse
Svejcar et al. propose a risk-mitigation approach to restoration wherein plantings are conducted across multiple years for projects in a bet-hedging strategy and evaluated through an adaptive management approach.
A split GAL4 RUBY assay for visual in planta detection of proteināprotein interactions
Chen et al. have developed a split GAL4 RUBY assay that enables macroscopically visual PPI detection in plant leaves in real time. Candidate interacting protein partners are fused to specific domains of the yeast GAL4 and herpes simplex virus VP16 transcription factors and transiently expressed in Nicotiana benthamina leaves by Agrobacterium infiltration. PPI, that may be either direct or indirect, results in transcriptional activation of a RUBY reporter gene leading to the production of the highly visual metabolite, betalain, in leaf tissue of living plants.
Careers
PhD Studentship: How phytoplankton viruses alter nutrient uptake and ocean biogeochemistry, Exeter
The PhD project will provide experimental data that will be used to develop molecular tools to monitor and evaluate in situ virus-controlled uptakes of nutrients. This project will determine how viral infection can alter the physiology of phytoplankton and will deliver the tools required to understand how this quantitatively important physiological state affects oceanic ecosystem functioning.
Post-doctoral Research Scientist Talbot Group, Norwich
The aim of this interdisciplinary collaborative research project is to understand the interaction between a newly identified family of effector proteins from the cereal crop pathogenĀ M. oryzaeĀ with host proteins of relevance to both pathogen virulence and host immunity. This ambitious project aims to dissect the molecular interactions that underpin recognition of this new family of effectors by a specific rice immune receptor and deploy this knowledge for novel resistance by transforming cereal crops with engineered receptors and determining resistance/susceptible outcomes. We also aim to identify new virulence-associated targets of these effectors in cereals using plant biochemistry approaches. Recent advances have established the principles of structure-guided immune receptor engineering for novel disease resistance and this project will explore this in a new area. The new postdoctoral research associate will join an existing team of specialists studying the biologyĀ M. oryzae, including how this pathogen causes disease, but also the plant processes underpinning resistance.
Post Doctoral Researcher, Biology, Maynooth
The Forest Ecology and Global Change Lab at Maynooth University is seeking a full-time, fixed term Postdoctoral Researcher (33-months) to join the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) funded āFuture Forests: Understanding the effect of tree diversity in planted forests under a rapidly changing climateā project.
Research Assistant (Biological Sciences), Singapore
The successful candidate will work with CHEW Fook Tim under a project on Genetic Improvement of Indoor Farming Crops.
Doctoral Researcher in Plant Genetics, Helsinki
The doctoral student will be employed full-time for a fixed term of two years in the research group of assoc. prof. Roosa Laitinen. The earliest starting date is 1.9.2023. Roosa LaitinenĀ“ s research group utilizes both global and local accessions of Arabidopsis thaliana to understand the mechanisms of plant adaptation and evolution. We combine methods of genetics and genomics to state-of-art molecular methods that are available for Arabidopsis. Our aim is to identify genes that allow plants to adapt to changing environments.
Postdoctoral Researcher in Plant Genetics, Helsinki
The Organismal and Evolutionary Research Programme invites applications for aĀ POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCHERĀ in plant genetics for a fixed term of two years in the research group of assoc. prof. Roosa Laitinen. There will be a trial period of four months in the beginning. The earliest starting date is 1.9.2023. Roosa LaitinenĀ“ s research group utilizes both global and local accessions ofĀ Arabidopsis thalianaĀ to understand the mechanisms of plant adaptation and evolution. We combine methods of genetics and genomics to state-of-art molecular methods that are available for Arabidopsis. Our aim is to identify genes that allow plants to adapt to changing environments.
Senior Post Doctoral Researcher, Biology, Maynooth
The Forest Ecology and Global Change Lab at Maynooth University is seeking a full-time fixed term Postdoctoral Researcher (22-months) to join the Irish Research Council funded āFuture Proofing Senegal's Great Green Wallā project. This research position is focused on assessing the growth of key Great Green Wall (GGW) tree species under current and future climate conditions. The researcher will utilize state-of-the-art plant growth chambers in Ireland to assess growth responses of seedlings to elevated atmospheric CO2 and temperatures (based on 2050 climate change scenarios for Senegal). The plant growth chambers are capable of tight control of atmospheric CO2, light intensity, temperature, and humidity. Measurements will include leaf gas analysis, chlorophyll fluorescence, biomass, and Carbon/Nitrogen analysis.
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