Research on phototropism has had far-reaching consequences in the field of plant biology, from helping to refute the ancient misconception of plant insensitivity to the environment to the discovery of the plant hormone auxin and the identification of the phototropin photoreceptors. In this essay, we trace the major trends and ideas that shaped past shoot phototropism research and briefly summar...

The Arabidopsis basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) proteins INDEHISCENT (IND) and ALCATRAZ (ALC) specify tissues required for fruit opening that have major roles in seed dispersal and plant domestication. Here, we show that synthesis of the phytohormone gibberellin is a direct and necessary target of IND, and that ALC interacts directly with DELLA repressors, which antagonize ALC function but are de...

Hormônios vegetais brassinosteroídicos – estrutura, bioatividade e aplicações: Os brassinosteróides são uma nova classe de hormônios vegetais com estrutura esteroídica polioxigenada, dotados de pronunciada atividade reguladora do crescimento vegetal. Esta revisão cobre sua ocorrência natural, os métodos biológicos e cromatográficos para sua detecção, sua biossíntese e metabolismo, a atividade b...

Two new types of signaling compounds have been discovered in wildfire smoke due to their ability to stimulate seed germination. The first discovered were karrikins, which share some structural similarity with the strigolactone class of plant hormones, and both signal through a common F-box protein. However, karrikins and strigolactones operate through otherwise distinct signaling pathways, each...

The phytohormone auxin is a key regulator of plant growth and development that exerts its functions through F-box receptors. Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) has four partially redundant of these receptors that comprise the TRANSPORT INHIBITOR RESPONSE1/AUXIN SIGNALING F-BOX1 auxin receptor (TAAR) clade. Recent studies have shown that the microRNA miR393 regulates the expression of different ...

Research on phototropism has had far-reaching consequences in the field of plant biology, from helping to refute the ancient misconception of plant insensitivity to the environment to the discovery of the plant hormone auxin and the identification of the phototropin photoreceptors. In this essay, we trace the major trends and ideas that shaped past shoot phototropism research and briefly summar...

Unlike the plant hormone auxin, the mechanism and function of cytokinin transport is poorly characterised. Two new studies now demonstrate that cytokinins transported from shoot to roots via the phloem are critical for creating mutually exclusive auxin and cytokinin signalling domains that control root vascular patterning.

Herbaceous vegetation comprises the main habitat type in cool-seasons grasslands and can be managed by various methods. We compared changes in plant communities and bird and mammal use of grasslands that were not managed, managed by mechanical methods (mowing), or managed by chemical methods (plant growth regulator). This 1-year study was conducted from May through October 2003 in Erie County, ...

Microalgae are a source of numerous compounds that can be used in many branches of industry. Synthesis of such compounds in microalgal cells can be amplified under stress conditions. Exposure to various metals can be one of methods applied to induce cell stress and synthesis of target products in microalgae cultures. In this review, the potential of producing diverse biocompounds (pigments, lip...