Scientists from Switzerland’s Department of Environmental Systems Sciences found bumblebee’s secret to accelerating flower production when there is pollen shortage: bite the plant’s leaves. According to their research article in Science, three species of bumblebees use their mouthparts in a characteristic way to damage mustard and tomato leaves leading to …
A scientific team from Europe compiled and reviewed the existing plant technologies being used to currently combat SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic. They published their paper with the aim of highlighting technologies where plants can make major contributions: diagnostic reagents for virus test kits, vaccine production, and …
Researchers from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem developed zeaxanthin-rich tomato fruit using transgenic metabolic engineering and conventional breeding techniques. Providing food sources with high zeaxanthin concentration could help curb the progression of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), one of the leading causes of blindness. Zeaxanthin has several benefits to human health …
Researchers at Canada’s Western University and Suncor have teamed up to produce serological test kits for COVID-19. They are developing algae as a production factory to make the necessary proteins to identify COVID-19 antibodies in people who were previously infected with the disease. Large-scale development of serological tests is limited …
Nature Biotechnology reports genetically engineered tobacco plants that glow brightly during its entire lifetime. The findings of the study conducted by researchers from Planta and the Russian Academy of Sciences could be used in the development of imaging tools for plants. Compared to previously reported glowing plants, these plants shine …
As plants are exposed to light, the protein complex photosystem II (PSII) energizes electrons to help power photosynthesis. But heat or intense light can damage a key subunit, known as D1, and stop PSII’s work until the plant makes and inserts a new D1 into the complex. Chloroplasts have their …
A team of researchers from China, U.S. and Israel, has found a protective gene in wild wheatgrass that shows promise in stopping fusarium head blight in wheat and barley crops. In their paper published in the journal Science, the group describes how they found the gene and how well it …
An international research team led by scientists at the Technical University of Munich (TUM), has produced the first comprehensive map of the proteome of the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. The team has mapped around 18,000 of all the proteins found in the plant. Proteins are the main molecular players in …
University of California researchers reported the use of CRISPR-Cas9 for marker-free targeted insertion of a carotenoid biosynthesis cassette in two sites in the rice genome. Their findings are available in Nature Communications. Targeted insertion of the transgene at chosen locations in the plant genome is a favorable option in plant …
Scientists at UC Davis have used CRISPR technology to genetically engineer rice with high levels of beta-carotene, the precursor of vitamin A. The technique they used provides a promising strategy for genetically improving rice and other crops. The study was published in the journal Nature Communications. Rice is a staple …
