Wei Zhang ORCID: 0000-0002-5092-643X Department of Plant Pathology, Kansas State University, 1712 Claflin Road, Throckmorton Hall, Manhattan, KS, 66506, USA weizhang17@ksu.edu Deposition of different chemical groups onto RNA generates diverse RNA modifications. All types of prokaryotic and eukaryotic RNA can undergo modifications. For example, methylation of the adenosine bases at... Read more

Plant viruses are a major threat to global food security. The large family of geminiviruses has a broad pathogenic impact on economically important crops such as maize, tomato, and cassava and causes millions of tons of losses per year worldwide (Rojas et al., 2005). Geminiviruses possess a circular DNA genome... Read more

Amith R. Devireddy, first author of Phytochrome B is required for systemic stomatal responses and ROS signaling during light stress Current Position: Postdoctoral Fellow, Bond Life Science Center, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA Education: Ph.D. Plant, Insect and Microbial Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA Non-scientific Interests: reading,... Read more

Author: Robert Skelton rskelton@saeon.ac.za Affiliation: South African Environmental Observation Network, Private Bag X7, Claremont, 7735, South Africa Knowledge of the spatio-temporal dynamics of water storage in plant stems is fundamental to understanding plant physiological function under drought stress (Tyree and Yang 1990; Holbrook 1995; Skelton 2019). Usually such processes—including reversible... Read more

Yalin Liu, Handong Su, Jing Zhang, et al. explore centromere birth and death by inducing rearrangements via pollen irradiation in maize. Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.20.00389 Background: The centromere is one of the most important components of chromosomes. Every normal chromosome has one functional centromere. The centromere is essential for accurate orientation... Read more

Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) chloroplast-division mutants that have abnormally large chloroplasts have been around for quite some time, not only because they can be identified relatively easily through screening (Pyke & Leech 1991) and because their spectacular morphology sparks intrigue, but because they have proven useful to this day for studying... Read more

Guillaume Charrier Université Clermont Auvergne, INRAE, PIAF, F-63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France. guillaume.charrier@inrae.fr Leaves are specialized for the photosynthetic assimilation of atmospheric carbon, but they also are responsible for the transpiration of water into the atmosphere, as the final output of the plant’s hydraulic system. They therefore regulate a significant part of... Read more

Steinbeck et al. investigate in vivo NAD redox dynamics in Arabidopsis. Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.20.00241 By Janina Steinbeck and Markus Schwarzländer Background: All organisms rely on their cellular metabolism to live, develop, grow, and procreate. Metabolism provides the energy, building blocks, and reductant (i.e., electrons) needed for these activities. A major... Read more

Marco Bürger, first author of In-silico analysis of the strigolactone ligand-receptor system Current Position: Senior research associate Education: PhD: Max Planck Institute of Molecular Physiology; B.S., M.Sc.: University of Osnabrück Non-scientific Interests: reading, traveling Brief bio: I earned a M.Sc. degree in cell biology from the University of Osnabrück, Germany.... Read more

The American Society of Plant Biologists is proud to celebrate Peer Review Week 2020, which recognizes peer reviewers and focuses on the theme “Trust in Peer Review.” In 2020, our plant biology community, like the rest of the world, was impacted by the devastating effects of COVID-19. Despite lab shutdowns,... Read more

Plant architecture is a major determinant of rice (Oryza sativa) productivity. Rice plant architecture is mainly defined by plant height, the spatial pattern of leaves, and tiller and inflorescence branching patterns. Plant height and tiller branching determine the biomass and harvest index, while the spatial pattern of leaves, including leaf... Read more

Plasmodesmata are cytoplasmic channels that physically connect the cytoplasm and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) of adjoining plant cells. These intercellular channels play important roles during plant development by allowing the molecular exchange of signaling molecules such as transcription factors, RNAs, and growth regulators. Interestingly, the plasma membrane (PM) of plasmodesmata is... Read more

The outer surface of the aerial parts of land plants is covered by the cuticle, a waxy layer that provides a barrier against damage caused by environmental factors as well as  protection against non-stomatal water loss. Castorina et al. (10.1104/pp.20.00322) now show that both cuticle deposition and cuticle-dependent leaf permeability... Read more

Diabetes and obesity are major health challenges. Diabetes alone affects over 422 million people worldwide and is among the top ten leading causes of death. Type-2 diabetes (T2D) is characterized by the body’s inefficient use of insulin, which leads to elevated blood Glc levels with detrimental effects on different organs... Read more

The enhanced elongation of root hairs in response to mild water deficiency permits more effective water and nutrition uptake. The growth of root hairs is regulated in part by actin dynamics. Thick actin-filament bundles (“thick bundles”) in the apical and subapical area of root hairs, for example, are known to... Read more

The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has issued a Request for Information (RFI) pertaining to the agency’s 2010 framework for providers of synthetic double-stranded DNA (dsDNA). This framework aims to mitigate the potential biosecurity risks... Read more

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Defense Sciences Office (DSO) will be holding a proposers day webcast on September 25, 2020 in anticipation of releasing its 2021 Young Faculty Award Program (YFA) research announcement (RA). DARPA’s YFA program aims to expose rising stars in junior faculty or equivalent positions at... Read more

Research network presents action plan for the plant science community to maximize impact on pressing global issues such as human health and climate change.  Plant science research has tremendous potential to address pressing global issues including climate change, food insecurity and sustainability. However, without sustained investment in plant science, the... Read more

On August 31, the National Science Foundation (NSF) announced, via two Dear Colleague Letters (DCL), new opportunities to support international collaboration.  Specifically, the two DCLs will enable collaborative projects in specific research areas with the UK and with France to undergo a single review under lead agency agreements.  Both lead... Read more

On September 1, ASPB joins more than 70 scientific organizations in support the call of House Science Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Johnson for a National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) study to “identify policies, strategies and practices that have been the most successful in preventing and addressing systemic racism”... Read more

The National Science Foundation (NSF) announced its second solicitation to support national artificial intelligence (AI) research institutes through the National AI Research Institutes Program.  This solicitation is a joint activity with the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science & Technology Directorate (S&T), the United States Department of Transportation... Read more

The National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Directorate for Biological Sciences (BIO) released the second solicitation for its Biology Integration Institutes (BII) as part of its continued effort to facilitate a “unification of biology.” BII will support research collaborations across disciplines, both within and beyond biology, that address an overarching biological theme... Read more

The National Science Foundation (NSF) recently released its fiscal year (FY) 2020 solicitation for the Innovations in Graduate Education (IGE) program.  In addition to accepting regular project proposals for grants through the IGE program, NSF for this competition will also be accepting proposals for a one-time cooperative agreement award to... Read more

The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), the organization established to improve the interface between science and policy on issues of biodiversity and ecosystem services, welcomes input from technical experts on the draft scoping report of its nexus assessment.  The focus of the nexus assessment is to produce information needed to... Read more

Brand new USDA regulations for crop biotechnology will begin phasing in during June 2020. The new “SECURE” rules (Sustainable, Ecological, Consistent, Uniform, Responsible, Efficient) govern what is — and isn’t — required for USDA review before going to market with a biotech crop. These rules could have immediate impacts on... Read more

Weekly updates on the US federal government’s response to COVID-19 and research opportunities. Federal Guidance Related to Research and Higher Education National Science Foundation (NSF) On June 5, it was noted at the NSF Environmental Research and Education (ERE) Advisory Committee that the Civic Innovation Challenge (CIVIC) program expects to... Read more

On May 27, the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (FFAR) released a request for application (RFA) through its Crops of the Future Collaborative.  FFAR is seeking transformative research and technologies “focused on ensuring under-appreciated crops also benefit from recent advances and emerging technologies for genotype-independent regeneration of fertile plants to... Read more

Weekly updates on the US federal government’s response to COVID-19 and research opportunities. Federal Guidance Related to Research and Higher Education National Science Foundation (NSF) The 2020 NSF Proposal and Award Policy and Procedures Guide will go into effect as planned on June 1. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic,... Read more

On May 18, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) released the final version of the agency’s update to the Coordinated Framework for the Regulation of Biotechnology (Coordinated Framework). APHIS initially released a proposed rule in 2019, but withdrew it following significant... Read more

On May 20, ASPB and other societies sent a letter to President Trump to address the Immigration Executive Proclamation. The letter writes, “we urge you to prioritize the immigration of science and technology talent that will spur the scientific breakthroughs and economic growth of the United States that is needed... Read more