Botany – PossibleThreat Articles

The pectin is protectin': Study uncovers a plant barrier against toxic aluminum

October 24, 2019 0 Comments Agriculture and Food, Botany, Endangered Plants, Genetics, mice, Pests and Parasites, Seeds, Soil Types

Aluminum toxicity is a major contributor to poor crop growth, especially in regions with acidic soils. How aluminum enters at the growing root tips of plants is not well understood. Researchers have found that pectin, a chemical component of the plant cell wall, may play a key role as a barrier to prevent aluminum from entering rice plants. The study sheds light on how rice plants may resist aluminum toxicity.

News Science

New data on the evolution of plants and origin of species

October 23, 2019 0 Comments Botany, Charles Darwin, Endangered Plants, Evolution, Evolutionary Biology, Human Evolution, Nature, Origin of Life

There are over 500,000 plant species in the world today. They all evolved from a common ancestor. How this leap in biodiversity happened is still unclear. Researchers now present the results of a unique project on the evolution of plants. Using genetic data from 1,147 species the team created the most comprehensive evolutionary tree for green plants to date.

News Science

Dry season increase in photosynthesis in Amazon rain forest

October 22, 2019 0 Comments Botany, Ecology Research, Endangered Plants, Forest, Geography, Global Warming, Nature, Rainforests

A new study demonstrated the potential of the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument on board the Copernicus Sentinel-5 Precursor satellite to measure and track chlorophyll fluorescence and photosynthesis of tropical forests in the Amazon.

News Science

Large-scale afforestation of African savannas will destroy valuable ecosystems

October 21, 2019 0 Comments Botany, Climate, Ecology Research, Environmental Awareness, Environmental Issues, Global Warming, Nature, Trees

Scientists from around the world argue that the suggested afforestation of large areas of Africa to mitigate climate change will destroy valuable ecological, agricultural, and tourist areas, while doing little to reduce global CO2 levels.

News Science

Defining the centromere

October 21, 2019 0 Comments Agriculture and Food, Biology, Botany, Cell Biology, Endangered Plants, Genetics, Life Sciences, Molecular Biology

Centromeres are the chromosomal domains at which the kinetochore, a protein complex required for the correct separation of chromosomes during mitosis and meiosis, is assembled. The incorporation of the histone variant CenH3 into centromeric nucleosomes is a prerequisite for the proper assembly and function of the kinetochore. A new study describes the chaperone protein NASPSIM3 and how it affects the depositioning of CenH3.

News Science

Plant physiology will be major contributor to future river flooding

October 21, 2019 0 Comments Botany, Climate, Endangered Plants, Environmental Issues, Global Warming, Nature, Soil Types, Water

Researchers describe the emerging role of ecophysiology in riparian flooding. As an adaptation to an overabundance of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, trees, plants and grasses constrict their stomatal pores to regulate the amount of the gas they consume, a mechanism that limits the release of water from leaves through evaporation. This saturates soils and causes more efficient run off and river flooding.

News Science

First report of cotton blue disease in the United States

October 19, 2019 0 Comments Agriculture and Food, Biochemistry Research, Biology, Botany, Life Sciences, Microbiology, Pests and Parasites, Virology

Reported from six counties in coastal Alabama in 2017, cotton blue disease affected approximately 25% of the state's cotton crop and caused a 4% yield loss. The disease was reported again in 2018, affecting 3-100% of cotton fields in Alabama but causing only a 1% yield loss. Symptoms, which include slowed plant growth, loss of chlorophyll, and dwarfing of infected leaves, usually do not appear until last August after full bloom. To date, there are no recommended strategies for management of this disease.

News Science

How plant roots grow hair

October 17, 2019 0 Comments Botany, Endangered Plants, Genetics, Nature, New Species, Pests and Parasites, Seeds, Soil Types

The roots of plants can do a lot of things: They grow in length to reach water, they can bend to circumvent stones, and they form fine root hairs enabling them to absorb more nutrients from the soil. A team of researchers has now identified an important regulator of this process.

News Science

Photosynthesis Olympics: Can the best wheat varieties be even better?

October 17, 2019 0 Comments Agriculture and Food, Botany, Endangered Plants, Environmental Issues, Food and Agriculture, Geochemistry, Grassland, Water

Scientists have put elite wheat varieties through a sort of 'Photosynthesis Olympics' to find which varieties have the best performing photosynthesis. This could ultimately help grain growers to get more yield for less inputs in the farm.

News Science

Old friends and new enemies: How evolutionary history can predict insect invader impacts

October 17, 2019 0 Comments Biodiversity, Botany, Exotic Species, Forest, Geography, Invasive Species, Nature, Trees

Scientists have developed a model that could help foresters predict which nonnative insect invasions will be most problematic. This could help managers decide where to allocate resources to avoid widespread tree death.

← Previous