Plant physiology articles within Nature Communications

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  • Article
    | Open Access

    Plants regulate phosphate homeostasis via the interaction of PHR transcription factors with SPX receptors bound to inositol pyrophosphate signaling molecules. Here the authors show that inositol pyrophosphate-bound SPX interacts with the coiled-coil domain of PHR, which regulates the oligomerization and activity of the transcription factor.

    • Martina K. Ried
    • , Rebekka Wild
    •  & Michael Hothorn

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Sorghum is a source of lignocellulosic biomass for the production of renewable fuels. Here the authors characterise the sorghum secondary cell wall using multi-dimensional magic angle spinning solid-state NMR and present a model dominated by interactions between three-fold screw xylan and amorphous cellulose.

    • Yu Gao
    • , Andrew S. Lipton
    •  & Jenny C. Mortimer

  • Article
    | Open Access

    MAPK signaling suppresses autoimmunity mediated by the SUMM2 receptor in Arabidopsis. Here Huang et al. show that a trimeric complex consisting of the GPI anchored protein LLG1, and the two receptor-like proteins LET1 and LET2, promotes activation of SUMM2 according to MAPK signaling status.

    • Yanyan Huang
    • , Chuanchun Yin
    •  & Ping He

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Hemicelluloses are an essential constituent of plant cell walls, but the individual biomechanical roles remain elusive. Here the authors report on the interaction of wood hemicellulose with bacterial cellulose during deposition and explore the resultant fibrillar architecture and mechanical properties.

    • Jennie Berglund
    • , Deirdre Mikkelsen
    •  & Francisco Vilaplana

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Plants regulate chlorophyll levels to optimise photosynthesis. Here Wang et al. describe two paralogous thylakoid proteins, BCM1 and BCM2, which stimulate chlorophyll biosynthesis and attenuate chlorophyll degradation respectively through interaction with the Mg-chelatase-stimulating factor GUN4 and Mg-dechelatase isoform SGR1.

    • Peng Wang
    • , Andreas S. Richter
    •  & Bernhard Grimm

  • Article
    | Open Access

    SnRK2 protein kinases play key roles in signaling during plant responses to abiotic stress. Here Soma et al. report three Arabidopsis Raf-like MAP kinase kinase kinases phosphorylate and activate a subclass of SnRK2s that rapidly respond to osmotic stress independently of ABA signaling.

    • Fumiyuki Soma
    • , Fuminori Takahashi
    •  & Kazuko Yamaguchi-Shinozaki

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Plants regulate nitrate uptake in roots to meet nitrogen demand in shoots. Here Ota et al. identify CEPDL2, a polypeptide that is induced during nitrogen deficiency in leaves, and show that it moves via the phloem to promote high-affinity nitrate uptake and root-to-shoot nitrate transport.

    • Ryosuke Ota
    • , Yuri Ohkubo
    •  & Yoshikatsu Matsubayashi

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Plants require long-distance water transport to avoid desiccation. Here, via μCT and MRI of grapevine stem, Bouda et al. show evidence of pressure gradient heterogeneity and flow redirection from wide to narrow vessels that suggests narrow vessels contribute more to xylem sap flow than previously appreciated.

    • Martin Bouda
    • , Carel W. Windt
    •  & Craig R. Brodersen

  • Article
    | Open Access

    How the water use efficiency of trees changes with atmospheric CO2 variations has mostly been studied on short time scales. Here, a newly compiled data set covering 1915 to 1995 shows how rates of change in water use efficiency vary with location and rainfall over the global tropics on a decadal scale.

    • Mark A. Adams
    • , Thomas N. Buckley
    •  & Tarryn L. Turnbull

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Stomata enable gas exchange for photosynthesis but close to promote survival during drought. Here, Henry et al. provide evidence for a safety-efficiency trade-off whereby plants with greater stomatal conductance under well-watered conditions are more sensitive to stomatal closure during dehydration.

    • Christian Henry
    • , Grace P. John
    •  & Lawren Sack

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Gas exchange for photosynthesis occurs via stomata on the leaf surface and the airspace in the underlying mesophyll tissue. Here, the authors show that stomatal function modulates mesophyll airspace formation and that their coordinated development influences water use efficiency in crops

    • Marjorie R. Lundgren
    • , Andrew Mathers
    •  & Andrew J. Fleming

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Molecular mechanism of how temperature-mediated control of bud break in perennial plants remains unclear. Here, the author show that transcriptional factor SHORT VEGETATIVE PHASE-LIKE and its downstream target TCP18 are negative regulators of hybrid aspen bud break.

    • Rajesh Kumar Singh
    • , Jay P. Maurya
    •  & Rishikesh P. Bhalerao

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Plants lack the amino acid sensors that regulate TOR in metazoans. Here Dong et al. show that Arabidopsis GCN2 senses carbon and nitrogen availability for cysteine synthesis while sulfur limitation activates TOR via glucose metabolism, providing a mechanism whereby plants control growth according to nutrient availability.

    • Yihan Dong
    • , Marleen Silbermann
    •  & Markus Wirtz

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The plant circadian clock regulates numerous developmental processes such as seasonal growth and flowering time. Here Ritteret al. identify two transcription factors, FRS7 and FRS12, which interact to form a repressor complex that regulates clock output partially by controlling the expression of GIGANTEA and PIF4.

    • Andrés Ritter
    • , Sabrina Iñigo
    •  & Alain Goossens

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The N-end rule pathway targets substrate proteins for proteasomal degradation. Here, Whiteet al. show that ArabidopsisPLANT CYSTEINE OXIDASEs show dioxygenase activity producing Cys-sulfinic acid at the N-terminus of target proteins, which then act as direct substrates for arginyl transferase.

    • Mark D. White
    • , Maria Klecker
    •  & Emily Flashman

  • Article
    | Open Access

    SWEET proteins are known to function as sugar transporters. Here, Kannoet al. show that Arabidopsis SWEET13 and SWEET14 are also able to transport the plant hormone gibberellin (GA) in heterologous systems and that sweetmutants display phenotypes consistent with altered GA response.

    • Yuri Kanno
    • , Takaya Oikawa
    •  & Mitsunori Seo

  • Article
    | Open Access

    During herbivory, deglycosylation of glycosylated phytochemicals may release aglycones which can be toxic when ingested. Here, Poreddy et al. show that ß-glucosidase in the tobacco hornworm midgut converts a toxic glycoside to a non-toxic form, a process which is crucial for larval development.

    • Spoorthi Poreddy
    • , Sirsha Mitra
    •  & Sagar S. Pandit

  • Article
    | Open Access

    GABA is an important neurotransmitter in animals, and while it accumulates in plants under stress, its potential role in plant signalling was poorly understood. Here, Rameshet al. show that GABA rapidly alters the activity of plant ALMT anion channels modifying root growth and stress tolerance.

    • Sunita A. Ramesh
    • , Stephen D. Tyerman
    •  & Matthew Gilliham

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Phytochromes are red-light photoreceptors in plants that regulate key life cycle processes, yet their evolutionary origins are not well understood. Using transcriptomic and genomic data, Li et al.find that canonical plant phytochromes originated in a common ancestor of land plants and charophyte algae.

    • Fay-Wei Li
    • , Michael Melkonian
    •  & Sarah Mathews

  • Article |

    P4-type ATPases flip lipids from one side of a membrane to the other. Here Poulsen et al. show that ALA10, a P4 ATPase from Arabidopsis thaliana, internalizes phospholipids from the outside of plant cells and suggest that this uptake may be physiologically important for lipid signalling events.

    • Lisbeth R. Poulsen
    • , Rosa L. López-Marqués
    •  & Michael Palmgren

  • Article |

    Azelaic acid (AZA) is a mobile signal that is thought to induce defence responses in plants in tissues distal from the initial infection site. Here, Cecchiniet al. propose that AZI1, a plastid-targeted lipid transfer protein that is necessary for the movement and priming functions of AZA.

    • Nicolás M. Cecchini
    • , Kevin Steffes
    •  & Jean T. Greenberg

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The Amazon rainforest is dominated by relatively few tree species, yet the degree to which this hyperdominance influences carbon cycling remains unknown. Here, the authors analyse 530 forest plots and show that ∼1% of species are responsible for 50% of the aboveground carbon storage and productivity.

    • Sophie Fauset
    • , Michelle O. Johnson
    •  & Oliver L. Phillips

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Lodgepole pine dwarf mistletoe is a parasitic forest pathogen that disperses its seeds via an explosive discharge. Here, deBruyn et al. show that ripened mistletoe fruits generate heat less than two minutes before this discharge, suggesting a role for thermogenesis in seed dispersal.

    • Rolena A. J. deBruyn
    • , Mark Paetkau
    •  & Cynthia Ross Friedman

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Plants must respond rapidly to unpredictable variations in light intensity to maximize photosynthetic efficiency. Here Armbruster et al.identify a potassium antiporter that is critical for accelerating proton fluxes across thylakoid membranes and minimizing energy loss in fluctuating light conditions.

    • Ute Armbruster
    • , L. Ruby Carrillo
    •  & Martin C. Jonikas

  • Article |

    Selecting for varieties of commercial crops with enhanced nutritional quality is important in agriculture. Here, the authors identify alleles of a gene in tomatoes that give rise to increased levels of vitamin E and find that the promoter of the gene is differentially methylated.

    • Leandro Quadrana
    • , Juliana Almeida
    •  & Fernando Carrari

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The (seco)iridoids and their monoterpenoid indole alkaloid (MIA) derivatives are plant-derived compounds with pharmaceutical applications. Here, the authors identify the last four missing steps of the (seco)iridoid pathway, which they reconstitute in an alternative plant host to produce the complex MIA, strictosidine.

    • Karel Miettinen
    • , Lemeng Dong
    •  & Danièle Werck-Reichhart

  • Article |

    Resources are finite for living organisms; therefore, compromises are required when partitioning resources to different tasks. Here, the authors use the Pareto concept to show how a trade-off is achieved in terms of the performance and metabolic efficiency in a panel of 97 Arabidopsis thalianaaccessions.

    • Sabrina Kleessen
    • , Roosa Laitinen
    •  & Zoran Nikoloski

  • Article |

    Mineral delivery to plant tissues must be tightly controlled to prevent tissue toxicity. Here, Yamaji et al. describe a manganese transporter in rice that delivers manganese to young leaves and panicles at low metal concentrations, while at high concentrations the metal is transported to older tissues due to rapid degradation of the transporter.

    • Naoki Yamaji
    • , Akimasa Sasaki
    •  & Jian Feng Ma

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Posttranslational modification of proteins by small ubiquitin-related modifier is a response to stress signalling in plants. Here, theArabdiposisprotein SIZ1 is shown to cause SUMOylation of nitrate reductases 1 and 2 and to increase their activity, suggesting that SIZ1 controls nitrate uptake via SUMOylation.

    • Bong Soo Park
    • , Jong Tae Song
    •  & Hak Soo Seo

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