š¦ The Week in Botany November 20, 2023
This week Iāve been working on a new system to track interest in stories on a wider range of sites than just Twitter and Mastodon. I was hoping to have it ready for the New Year, but it looks like I might have to work faster.
Happy Thanksgiving to those of you celebrating this week. Iāll be back with another email at the usual time next week. Until then, take care.
Alun (webmaster@botany.one)
On Botany One
How Gene Duplication Led to the Evolution of Nectar Spurs
Scientists studied how genes are turned on and off during flower development in a group of plants with special spur structures on their flowers, finding evidence that duplication of a certain gene helped the evolution of these spurs for collecting nectar.
Cannabis plants may have evolved cannabinoids to prevent herbivores getting the munchies
A study shows how cannabis plants may be the source of new pesticides, but there is a catch.
News & Views
ā» Plant biology discovery is ālike a switch between life and deathā
MSU researchers reveal a biological pathway that could be targeted to breed more resilient crops.
This city is planning an enormous āvertical forestā that will let residents live alongside over 10,000 plants and trees
Utrecht, Netherlands, will be the latest epicenter of award-winning Italian architect Stefano Boeriās vertical forest tower block ā a project that will house over 10,000 plants and trees in addition to its residents.
The botany behind why cranberries became a Thanksgiving staple
Cranberries are a staple in U.S. households at Thanksgiving ā but how did this bog dweller end up on holiday tables?
The plants tell the story: Massachusettsā coldest days not nearly so cold
The US Department of Agricultureās plant hardiness map paints a clear picture of warming winters.
Climate change is hastening the demise of Pacific Northwest forests
Iconic red cedars ā known as the āTree of Lifeā ā and other tree species in the Pacific Northwest have been dying because of climate-induced drought, researchers say.
Want to help birds this winter? Plant native berries.
Many birds turn to calorie-packed berries in autumn for an energy boost.
āIt was incredible to seeā: Kenyans dig deep on first national tree planting day
Government sets up national holiday in hope of planting 15bn trees by 2032 to tackle climate crisis and deforestation.
Invasive water weed unwittingly shared among gardening club
Members of a Tasman gardening club were unknowingly sharing cuttings of an invasive water weed that hadn't been found in the South Island since 2009.
How much can trees fight climate change? Massively, but not alone, study finds.
Restoring global forests where they occur naturally could potentially capture an additional 226 gigatons of planet-warming carbon, equivalent to about one-third of the amount that humans have released since the beginning of the Industrial Era, according to a study published Monday in the journal Nature.
'It feels like I'm not crazy.' Gardeners aren't surprised as USDA updates key map
A newly updated government map has many of the nation's gardeners rushing online, Googling what new plants they can grow in their mostly warming regions.
This corn was down to its last two cobs. Now it could help farmers grow food in the climate crisis
Hurricane Florence was targeting Campbell Coxeās farm. Days earlier, the 2018 storm had rapidly intensified in the Atlantic, and now Darlington County, South Carolina, was in the path. Coxe had to make a quick decision: Which of his familyās crops was he going to save?
Scientific Papers
ā» Phylogenomic Analysis of a 55.1-kb 19-Gene Dataset Resolves a Monophyletic Fusarium that Includes the Fusarium solani Species Complex (OA)
In 2013, the Fusarium community voiced near unanimous support for a concept of Fusarium that represented a clade comprising all agriculturally and clinically important Fusarium species, including the F. solani species complex (FSSC). Subsequently, this concept was challenged in 2015 by one research group who proposed dividing the genus Fusarium into seven genera, including the FSSC described as members of the genus Neocosmospora, with subsequent justification in 2018 based on claims that the 2013 concept of Fusarium is polyphyletic. Geiser et al. test this claim and provide a phylogeny based on exonic nucleotide sequences of 19 orthologous protein-coding genes that strongly support the monophyly of Fusarium including the FSSC.
PSKR1 balances the plant growthādefence trade-off in the rhizosphere microbiome ($)
Microbiota benefit their hosts by improving nutrient uptake and pathogen protection. How host immunity restricts microbiota while avoiding autoimmunity is poorly understood. Song et al. show that the Arabidopsis phytosulfokine receptor 1 (pskr1) mutant displays autoimmunity (plant stunting, defence-gene expression and reduced rhizosphere bacterial growth) in response to growth-promoting Pseudomonas fluorescens.
ReadCube (OA): https://rdcu.be/drhtQ
Flavour, culture and food security: The spicy entanglements of chile pepper conservation in 21st century Mexico (OA)
Political interests and power structures shape state-led crop conservation and food policy. As a crop that relates to culture and belonging, the chile crop is ideal for exploring how food security policy and crop conservation schemes integrate aspects beyond staple crops, calories and/or electoral incentives. What do these schemes mean for the food and ingredients we love?
An elastic proteinaceous envelope encapsulates the early Arabidopsis embryo (OA)
Plant external surfaces are often covered by barriers that control the exchange of molecules, protect from pathogens and offer mechanical integrity. A key question is when and how such surface barriers are generated. Post-embryonic surfaces have well-studied barriers, including the cuticle, and it has been previously shown that the late Arabidopsis thaliana embryo is protected by an endosperm-derived sheath deposited onto a primordial cuticle. Harnvanichvech et al. show that both cuticle and sheath are preceded by another structure during the earliest stages of embryogenesis.
CRISPR enables sustainable cereal production for a greener future (OA)
Ahmar et al. review advanced uses of CRISPR/Cas9 and derived systems in genome editing of cereal crops to enhance a variety of agronomically important features. They also highlight new technological advances for delivering preassembled Cas9-gRNA ribonucleoprotein (RNP)-editing systems, multiplex editing, gain-of-function strategies, the use of artificial intelligence (AI)-based tools, and combining CRISPR with novel speed breeding (SB) and vernalization strategies.
Nitrogen isotopes reveal independent origins of N2-fixing symbiosis in extant cycad lineages ($)
Kipp et al. use foliar nitrogen isotope ratiosāa proxy for N2 fixation in modern plantsāto probe the antiquity of the cycadācyanobacterial symbiosis. They find that fossilized cycad leaves from two Cenozoic representatives of extant genera have nitrogen isotopic compositions consistent with microbial N2 fixation. In contrast, all extinct cycad genera have nitrogen isotope ratios that are indistinguishable from co-existing non-cycad plants and generally inconsistent with microbial N2 fixation, pointing to nitrogen assimilation from soils and not through symbiosis. This pattern indicates that, rather than being ancestral within cycads, N2-fixing symbiosis arose independently in the lineages leading to living cycads during or after the Jurassic.
Genome evolution in plants and the origins of innovation (OA)
The periods of dynamic genome evolution often coincide with the evolution of key traits, demonstrating the coevolution of plant genomes and phenotypes at a macroevolutionary scale. Conventionally, plant complexity and diversity have been considered through the lens of gene duplication and the role of gene loss in plant evolution remains comparatively unexplored. However, in light of reductive evolution across multiple plant lineages, the association between gene loss and plant phenotypic diversity warrants greater attention.
Insights into molecular links and transcription networks integrating drought stress and nitrogen signaling (OA)
Recent evidence in Arabidopsis thaliana indicates that transcription factors (TFs) involved in abscisic acid (ABA) signaling affect N metabolism and nitrate responses, and reciprocally, components of nitrate signaling might affect ABA and drought gene responses. Advances in understanding regulatory circuits of nitrate and drought crosstalk in plant tissues empower targeted genetic modifications to enhance plant development and stress resistance, critical traits for optimizing crop yield and promoting sustainable agriculture.
Conservation of heat stress acclimation by the inositol polyphosphate multikinase, IPMK responsible for 4/6-InsP7 production in land plants (OA)
Inositol pyrophosphates (PP-InsPs) are soluble cellular messengers that integrate environmental cues to induce adaptive responses in eukaryotes. In plants, the biological functions of various PP-InsP species are poorly understood, largely due to the absence of canonical enzymes present in other eukaryotes. The recent identification of a new PP-InsP isomer with yet unknown enantiomeric identity, 4/6-InsP7 in the eudicot Arabidopsis thaliana, further highlights the intricate PP-InsP signalling network employed by plants. The abundance of 4/6-InsP7 in land plants, the enzyme(s) responsible for its synthesis, and the physiological functions of this species are all currently unknown. Yadav et al. show that 4/6-InsP7 is the major PP-InsP species present across land plants.
An acidophilic fungus is integral to prey digestion in a carnivorous plant (OA)
Carnivorous plant leaves, such as those of the spoon-leaved sundew Drosera spatulata, secrete mucilage which hosts microorganisms potentially aiding in prey digestion. Sun et al. characterised the mucilage microbial communities and identified the acidophilic fungus Acrodontium crateriforme as the ecologically dominant species. The fungus grows and sporulates on sundew glands as its preferred acidic environment. They show that the A. crateriforme has a reduced genome similar to that of other symbiotic fungi. Based on the transcriptomes when encountering prey insects, we revealed a high degree of genes co-option in each species during fungus-plant coexistence and digestion.
Bomarea pastazensis (Alstroemeriaceae), an exceptionally small new species from the eastern Andean slopes of Ecuador (OA)
Recent field research on the eastern slopes of the Andes resulted in the discovery of a new species of Bomarea from the Cerro Candelaria Reserve in the Tungurahua province of Ecuador. Bomarea pastazensis is the second smallest species in the genus and differs from the smallest by the presence of glutinous trichomes on the ovary, glabrous sepals, and greenish-yellow petals with purple spots. Based on IUCN guidelines, a preliminary conservation status is assigned as Vulnerable (VU).
Relationships among sporophyte and gametophyte traits of 27 subtropical montane moss species ($)
Moss sporophytes differ strongly in size and biomass partitioning, potentially reflecting reproductive and dispersal strategies. Understanding how sporophyte traits are coordinated is essential for understanding moss functioning and evolution. This study aimed to answer: 1) how sporophyte size and proportions differ between moss species with and without prominent seta central strands, 2) how seta anatomical and morphological traits are related, and 3) how sporophyte biomass relates to gametophyte biomass and nutrient concentrations.
Careers
Post Doctoral Fellow, Tennessee
The College of Agriculture at Tennessee State University in Nashville, TN invites applications for a 36-month postdoctoral fellowship. No prior postdoctoral experience is necessary. The goal of this project is 1) To generate climate smart crops with deeper root systems that are able to tolerate higher temperatures and sequester CO2 in deeper soils, 2) To use carbon nanoparticles as novel DNA carriers in plant transformation, 3) To investigate the combination of nano-delivery along with biolistic approach in improving DNA delivery into plant cells, and 4) To optimize speed breeding protocols along with plant transformation approach, for accelerating plant maturity and recovery of homologous transgenic plants. The postdoc will be responsible for establishing plant transformation in soybean, optimization of speed breeding protocols for this crop and generation of transgenic lines with a series of knockout and over-expression lines using CRISPR-Cas system. The incumbent will also be expected to work with and train graduate and undergraduate students together with the PI.
Community Network Coordinator, Leeds
āBlack in Plant Scienceā is recruiting a coordinator to facilitate the growth of the network and to support the delivery of our mission. āBlack in Plant Scienceā is a new network for UK-based indigenous Africans and people of the African diaspora (the voluntary and involuntary movement of Africans and their descendants during the modern and pre-modern periods) who work with or study plants, or are interested in a career in this area. Our mission is to connect, celebrate, and cultivate UK-based Black Plant Scientists with the goal of increasing participation and retention.
Assistant Professor in Plant Resilience to Climate Change, California
The Department of Botany and Plant Sciences at the University of California, Riverside (UCR) invites applications for a tenure-track Assistant Professor position focusing on plant resilience to climate change with a potential start date of July 1, 2024. An ideal candidate would use genomics, broadly defined, to understand and predict the physiological response of plants to global change. Specifically, the candidate should work to understand processes that contribute to plant resilience to extreme climate events. The candidateās research program should include quantitative, experimental approaches and may focus on plants in either agricultural or natural systems.
Assistant Professor, Botany, Arizona
Individuals are invited to apply for a tenure-track Assistant Professor of Botany/Plant Evolution in the Department of Biological Sciences at Northern Arizona University (NAU). We are seeking an individual with the expertise to serve as curator of the Deaver Herbarium and with related research interests in botany and plant evolution including the integration of genomic methods. Successful candidates will be expected to contribute to the BS, MS, and PhD programs in the Biological Sciences through teaching undergraduate and graduate-level classes in disciplines including botany, taxonomy, systematics, evolution, and genomics.
Assistant Professor of Plant Biology (Plant Ecology), Georgia
A primary teaching responsibility will be plant ecology, field botany, and plant systematics, with teaching opportunities including introductory courses in the biological and environmental sciences, core curriculum, and other upper-level courses in our catalog that support our two majors and our graduate program. Teaching responsibilities will include 12 contact hours/semester. The candidate will be expected to develop a plant ecology research program.
Regular Faculty - Controlled Environmental Agriculture, Idaho
The University of Idaho, College of Agricultural & Life Sciences, Plant Sciences department, is seeking a tenure-track Research Faculty, Assistant Professor, to develop an extramurally funded, nationally and internationally recognized research program to address sustainable production in controlled environment systems. This candidate is expected to work independently and collaboratively with other faculty members in research and to engage industry as appropriate as partners and in outreach. Specific areas of research may include plant nutrition and disease, irrigation systems, hydroponics, vertical farming, and organic production within controlled environments.
Fungal Taxonomy Assistant, Boston
The Farlow Herbarium (FH) through Harvard University seeks to hire a Fungal Taxonomy Assistant to work on a National Science Foundation (NSF) funded project titled: āARTS: A North American monograph of the powdery mildews (Erysiphaceae)ā. The FH houses approximately 500,00 specimens of fungi and about 2,000 collections of powdery mildews of which many are type specimens.
PhD Studentship: Rustling up something to eat: investigating predator-plant interactions as indirect drivers of ecosystem services, Newcastle UK
Using model systems involving spiders and the plants they commensalistically use, this project will explore how predator-plant commensalisms drive ecosystem service provision and how nutrients structure these interaction networks. The project will include training in molecular dietary and eDNA analysis, nutrient analysis and entomological field surveys to construct and analyse merged networks.
Postdoctoral Research Associate, Edinburgh
We are looking for a Post-Doctoral Research Associate to lead a project to develop Selaginella apoda as a new genetic model system for investigating plant evolution. The project is based in the lab of Dr Sandy Hetherington (The Molecular Palaeobotany and Evolution Group) in the Institute of Molecular Plant Sciences.
Lecturer or Senior Lecturer in Plant Science and Botany, Liverpool
As Lecturer or Senior Lecturer in Plant Science and Botany, you will be required to make a significant contribution to the delivery of our modules on field botany, plant diversity and identification and plant physiology and other areas of our core curriculum depending on your areas of expertise and experience.