Plant sciences articles within Nature Communications

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  • 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

    Cofactor-mediated energy and electron transfer in photosystem II occurs preferentially through one branch of the reaction centre, despite there being a symmetric path available. Here, the authors use computational methods to determine the influence of protein conformation on this selectivity.

    • Lu Zhang
    • , Daniel-Adriano Silva
    •  & Xuhui Huang

  • Article |

    Compared with yeast and animal cells, the detailed dynamics of autophagosome extension in plants remain particularly unclear. Here the authors show that the autophagy-related protein, ATG5, forms a torus-shaped domain on the early phagophore in Arabidopsis, and involve the ER in a model for plant autophagosome formation.

    • Romain Le Bars
    • , Jessica Marion
    •  & Michele Wolfe Bianchi

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Symbiotic associations are widespread, yet their evolutionary histories remain poorly understood. Here, Werner et. al.show a single evolutionary innovation driving symbiotic nitrogen fixation, followed by multiple gains and losses of the symbiosis and the emergence of groups with stable nitrogen fixers.

    • Gijsbert D. A. Werner
    • , William K. Cornwell
    •  & E. Toby Kiers

  • Article |

    Diatoms are photosynthetic microalgae with underutilized biotechnological potential. Here, the authors carry out targeted gene modifications of lipid metabolism genes in the diatom, Phaeodactylum tricornutum, resulting in a strain that exhibits a 45-fold increase in triacylglycerol accumulation.

    • Fayza Daboussi
    • , Sophie Leduc
    •  & Philippe Duchateau

  • Article |

    Seed dispersal can determine the ability of plant species to track shifting climates; therefore, it can influence future biodiversity outcomes. Here, the authors model seed dispersal by fruit-eating vertebrates across the Australian Wet Tropics rainforest and find that it is projected to markedly decrease for many plant species.

    • Karel Mokany
    • , Soumya Prasad
    •  & David A. Westcott

  • Article |

    Plant species share a core metabolome, however the extent to which metabolic responses to environmental cues are also conserved remains unclear. Schweiger et al.describe shifts in the leaf metabolomes of five plant species during mycorrhizal fungal infection, and uncover high species-specificity.

    • Rabea Schweiger
    • , Markus C. Baier
    •  & Caroline Müller

  • Article |

    El Niño Southern Oscillation affects seasonal climate worldwide; however, it is uncertain how it impacts global crop yields. Here, the authors present a global assessment of the impacts of El Niño Southern Oscillation on crop productivity and show large differences among regions, crop types and cropping technologies.

    • Toshichika Iizumi
    • , Jing-Jia Luo
    •  & Toshio Yamagata

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The nexine is a conserved layer of the pollen wall in land plants. The authors show that the AHL family protein TRANSPOSABLE ELEMENT SILENCING VIA AT-HOOK (TEK) is necessary for nexine formation in Arabidopsis, acting downstream of the transcription factor ABORTED MICROSPORES (AMS).

    • Yue Lou
    • , Xiao-Feng Xu
    •  & Zhong-Nan Yang

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Common tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) is a widely cultivated and economically important non-food crop. Here, the authors report the draft genome sequences for three of the most common tobacco varieties and provide insights into the evolution of tobacco through a comparative analysis with closely related species.

    • Nicolas Sierro
    • , James N.D. Battey
    •  & Nikolai V. Ivanov

  • Article
    | Open Access

    During plant development, organ size is controlled by cell proliferation and expansion, but the molecular mechanisms involved are unclear. Here, Lu et al.show that leaf cell expansion is controlled by the KUA1 transcription factor that acts in a circadian manner and modulates the expression of genes encoding cell wall-localized peroxidases.

    • Dandan Lu
    • , Ting Wang
    •  & Jos H.M. Schippers

  • Article |

    Flowering is triggered by changes in day length, which are detected by a network of genes including GI and FKF1. Kubota et al. show that GI and FKF1homologues control transition from vegetative- to reproductive growth in the liverwort, revealing a more ancient than expected evolutionary origin for flowering control.

    • Akane Kubota
    • , Shogo Kita
    •  & Takayuki Kohchi

  • Article |

    The transcriptional effects of auxin signalling are mediated by auxin response factors (ARFs) that interact with inhibitory IAA proteins. Nanao et al.present the crystal structure of domain III/IV of ARF5, revealing the structural basis for its interaction with IAAs and its potential to trigger ARF5 oligomerization.

    • Max H. Nanao
    • , Thomas Vinos-Poyo
    •  & Renaud Dumas

  • 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
    | Open Access

    Daytime flowering in Arabidopsis is stimulated by the secreted protein FT. Nakamura et al. show that FT binds the lipid phosphatidylcholine (PC) in vitro, and that in plants, different PC species predominate during day and night, with daytime species stimulating flowering in a manner that is partially dependent on FT.

    • Yuki Nakamura
    • , Fernando Andrés
    •  & George Coupland

  • 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 |

    The differentiation of procambial cells into xylem cells during plant radial growth is regulated by the TDIF–TDR signalling pathway. Here, the authors show that GSK3 protein kinases and their target transcription factor BES1 act downstream of TDIF–TDR signalling during xylem cell differentiation in Arabidopsis.

    • Yuki Kondo
    • , Tasuku Ito
    •  & Hiroo Fukuda

  • Article |

    The rice spikelet is important for seed development and yield. In this study, Cai et al.report that the plant hormone jasmonic acid can control spikelet development and potentially regulate cereal yield.

    • Qiang Cai
    • , Zheng Yuan
    •  & Dabing Zhang

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Plants produce a variety of metabolites that have a critical role in growth and development. Here, the authors carry out a genome-wide association analysis of metabolites and metabolite features in maize and identify candidate genes involved in secondary metabolism, and a potential biomarker for the genetic improvement of the crop.

    • Weiwei Wen
    • , Dong Li
    •  & Jianbing Yan

  • Article |

    Transcription activator-like effectors (TALEs) of pathogenic bacteria activate target genes in host plants to support infection. Here, the authors show that TALEs with single natural repeats of aberrant length tolerate one base pair deletions and may enable the bacteria to overcome natural plant resistance.

    • Annekatrin Richter
    • , Jana Streubel
    •  & Jens Boch

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Oxygen sensing in plants is mediated by the N-end rule pathway, in which the N-terminal cysteine residue of ERF-VII transcription factors is selectively oxidised. Weits et al.identify cysteine oxidases responsible for this modification, and show that their expression is itself regulated by ERF-VII.

    • Daan A. Weits
    • , Beatrice Giuntoli
    •  & Francesco Licausi

  • Article |

    Stomata regulate gas exchange between plants and the atmosphere but whether the plant hormone auxin regulates stomatal development has not been investigated. Here, the authors reveal dynamic changes of auxin activity levels during stomatal development and show that auxin transporters are required for stomatal patterning.

    • Jie Le
    • , Xu-Guang Liu
    •  & Fred Sack

  • Article |

    Tetraploid cotton contains two homoeologous genes GhMYB2A and GhMYB2D but their regulation is unclear. Here, GhMYB2D is shown to accumulate to higher levels than GhMYB2Aduring fibre initiation, and is a target of two microRNAs, generating ta-siRNAs, suggesting a role for microRNAs in the divergence of duplicate genes and fibre trait.

    • Xueying Guan
    • , Mingxiong Pang
    •  & Z. Jeffrey Chen

  • Article |

    Light induces the expression of many plant genes including chlorophyll a/b-binding proteins—CABs—but whether this occurs via altered genomic organization is unknown. Here, Feng et al. use a rolling-circle amplification model to show that CABgenes undergo nuclear repositioning in response to light.

    • Chun-Miao Feng
    • , Yongjian Qiu
    •  & Meng Chen

  • Article |

    Determining the link between gene polymorphisms and phenotypic traits is the subject of intense research in agricultural plant science. In this study, Fu et al. conduct RNA sequencing in maize kernels to determine gene polymorphisms, which may aid future research aiming to improve the nutritional value of maize.

    • Junjie Fu
    • , Yanbing Cheng
    •  & Guoying Wang

  • Article |

    FLOWERING LOCUS T is an important mobile signal that regulates plant development and flowering. In this study, Lee et al. demonstrate that multiple FLOWERING LOCUS Tgenes are involved in onion flowering and bulb formation.

    • Robyn Lee
    • , Samantha Baldwin
    •  & Richard Macknight

  • Article |

    It is generally assumed that ecologically relevant intraspecific diversity is restricted to DNA sequence variation. Here, Latzel et al.show that epigenetic diversity can increase the productivity of plant populations as well as their ability to suppress competitors.

    • Vít Latzel
    • , Eric Allan
    •  & Oliver Bossdorf

  • Article |

    Plants primarily synthesize phenylalanine in plastids via arogenate. Here, Yoo et al. provide evidence that petunia flowers also employ an alternative microbial-like pathway to synthesize phenylalanine that is partially localized in the cytosol and interconnected with tyrosine catabolism.

    • Heejin Yoo
    • , Joshua R. Widhalm
    •  & Natalia Dudareva

  • Article |

    Little is known about the genes that confer salt tolerance in trees. Here, Ma et al. report the genome sequence of the desert poplar, Populus euphratica, and provide insight into the genetic architecture and adaptation of this salt tolerant desert poplar.

    • Tao Ma
    • , Junyi Wang
    •  & Jianquan Liu

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Plants activate a gene transcription response under low iron conditions but how they sense insufficient iron levels is unclear. In this study, Kobayashi et al.identify two iron-binding proteins that possess ubiquitin ligase activity and are negative regulators of the iron deficiency response.

    • Takanori Kobayashi
    • , Seiji Nagasaka
    •  & Naoko K. Nishizawa

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The kiwifruit is an economically and nutritionally important fruit crop with high vitamin C content. Here, the authors report the draft genome sequence of a heterozygous kiwifruit and through comparative genomic analysis provide valuable insight into kiwifruit evolution.

    • Shengxiong Huang
    • , Jian Ding
    •  & Yongsheng Liu

  • Article |

    Both strigolactone and DELLA plant signalling pathways have a role in shoot branching. In this study, Nakamura et al.show that DWARF14 cleaves strigolactones creating a binding surface for the DELLA protein SLR1, thereby providing a mechanism for pathway crosstalk.

    • Hidemitsu Nakamura
    • , You-Lin Xue
    •  & Tadao Asami

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