Phragmites australis is a wetland grass with high genetic variability, augmented by its cosmopolitan distribution, clonal growth form and large variation in chromosome numbers. Different ploidy levels and ecotypes differ in morphology and ecophysiological traits, and may possess different levels of phenotypic variation. The aim of this study was to quantify the natural variation in […]

The Nepenthes gracilis pitcher plant, found in southeast Asia, has a unique, semi-slippery wax crystal surface on the underside of the pitcher lid. Researchers have found that ants could cling to this surface under normal conditions, but a rain drop falling on the lid is enough to dislodge the insects, catapulting them into the pitcher […]

As plant Golgi bodies move through the cell along the actin cytoskeleton, they face the need to maintain their polarized stack structure whilst receiving, processing and distributing protein cargo destined for secretion. Structural proteins, or Golgi matrix proteins, help to hold cisternae together and tethering factors direct cargo carriers to the correct target membranes. This […]

Ant-plant mutualisms play key roles in the functioning of tropical ecosystems, and are often important components of trophic webs but the net benefits to each partner are rarely quantified: A Carnivorous Plant Fed by Its Ant Symbiont: A Unique Multi-Faceted Nutritional Mutualism. (2012) PLoS ONE 7(5): e36179. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0036179 Scarcity of essential nutrients has led plants […]

Unlike ‘Audrey 2’ – the plant which ate members of the cast from ‘The Little Shop of Horrors’ (botanically suspect but with some good songs) – the maize seed grows on the cob by extracting goodies from the mother plant. YouTube has a great video of a production of Little Shop of Horrors: Feed me Seymour […]

A single well-designed and timely intervention can influence future student behavior and offers a framework of potential use.

2012 is a big year for roots researchers. The International Society of Root Research is holding its big event in the UK for the first time. The event, in Dundee, will be held at the end of June and has keynote speakers from around the world. Jun Abe of the University of Tokyo has said […]

Plant science is key to addressing the major challenges facing humanity in the 21st Century. In an article published in The Plant Cell, the two researchers argue that the development of new technology is key to transforming plant biology in order to meet human needs. Plants serve as the conduit of energy into the biosphere, […]

Global agriculture is facing major challenges to ensure global food security, such as the need to breed high-yielding crops adapted to future climates and the identification of dedicated feedstock crops for biofuel production (biofuel feedstocks). Plant phenomics offers a suite of new technologies to accelerate progress in understanding gene function and environmental responses. This will […]

The aim of the AoB blog is to “promote the science of botany”, be it the botany that is published in Annals of Botany, in AoB Plants, or elsewhere. To that end we try to make it as easy as possible for you to be aware of the information we publish, without having to visit […]

To establish a systemic infection, plant viruses invade neighboring cells via cell to cell movement trough plasmodesmata channels until they reach the vascular system. This cell to cell movement is an active process involving one or more movement proteins encoded by the virus, which interact with other virus and host factors. Exactly how these movement […]

You can afford to worry about medical research once you have enough food to eat.