Plants have little wiggle room to survive drought, scientists report
Plants all over the world are more sensitive to drought than many experts realized, according to a new study by scientists at UCLA and China's Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden. The research will...
View ArticlePlant genetic advance could lead to more efficient conversion of plant...
Plant geneticists including Sam Hazen at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and Siobhan Brady at the University of California, Davis, have sorted out the gene regulatory networks that control cell...
View ArticleStudy yields insights into how plant cells grow
A study by Purdue University plant scientists and University of Nebraska-Lincoln engineers advances our understanding of how plants control their shape and development at the cellular level.
View ArticleResearchers create fast-growing trees that are easier to turn into fuel
Researchers at the University of Georgia have discovered that manipulation of a specific gene in a hardwood tree species not only makes it easier to break down the wood into fuel, but also...
View ArticlePlant cell structure discovery could lead to improved renewable materials
The step forward follows research by the Universities of Warwick and Cambridge and the unexpected discovery of a previously unknown arrangement of molecules in plant cell walls.
View ArticleFindings reveal clues to functioning of mysterious 'mimivirus'
Researchers have discovered the structure of a key protein on the surface of an unusually large virus called the mimivirus, aiding efforts to determine its hosts and unknown functions.
View ArticleSupercomputer unlocks the secrets of plant cells to create more resilient crops
Scientists from he Universities of Melbourne and Queensland and IBM Research have moved a step closer to identifying the nanostructure of cellulose – the basic structural component of plant cell walls...
View ArticleUnlocking the biofuel energy stored in plant cell walls
By virtue of their chloroplasts, plants are superb harvesters of solar energy. They use it to build leaves, flowers, fruits, stems, and roots. We harvest a small percentage of that energy in the form...
View ArticleCleaning up bunker oil with white rot fungi
Researchers evaluated the potential capabilities of six white rot fungi to break down oil in contaminated canal waters.
View ArticleResearchers uncover key to barley domestication
An international team of researchers including the University of Adelaide have unlocked the genetic key in barley that led to the start of cropping in human agriculture.
View ArticleBiology, not just physics, controls release of scent compounds from plants
Purdue University research suggests active biological mechanisms transport scent and taste compounds known as volatiles from plant cells to the atmosphere, a finding that could overturn the textbook...
View ArticleNew hybrid microscope offers unparalleled capabilities
A microscope being developed at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory will allow scientists studying biological and synthetic materials to simultaneously observe chemical and...
View ArticleGrape waste could make competitive biofuel
The solid waste left over from wine-making could make a competitive biofuel, University of Adelaide researchers have found.
View ArticleNew method for modifying natural polymers could help bring lifesaving...
In drug-delivery research, finding a pharmaceutically active molecule is only half the battle: the drug must also be able to safely reach its target.
View ArticleTequila plant shows promise for biofuel
A desert plant, best known for producing tequila in Mexico, shows promise as a source of biofuel and other biochemical products, according to University of Adelaide research.
View ArticleResearchers create inside-out plants to watch how cellulose forms
Researchers have been able to watch the interior cells of a plant synthesize cellulose for the first time by tricking the cells into growing on the plant's surface.
View ArticlePlants crawled onto land earlier than we give them credit, genetic evidence...
Plant biologists agree that it all began with green algae. At some point in our planet's history, the common ancestor of trees, ferns, and flowers developed an alternating life cycle—presumably...
View ArticleNew way to reduce plant lignin could lead to cheaper biofuels
Scientists from the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have shown for the first time that an enzyme can be tweaked to reduce lignin in plants. Their...
View ArticleHow stick insects handle indigestive food
Plant cell walls are comprised of many complex polymers that require multiple different enzymes to fully break down, such as cellulase to digest cellulose and xylanase to digest xylan. For decades...
View ArticlePlant cell wall development revealed in space and time for the first time
Scientists have mapped changes in composition of plant cell walls over space and time, providing new insights into the development and growth of all plants.
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