News tagged with plant genetics

New research on rapidly-disappearing ancient plant offers hope for species recovery

Cycads, "living fossil" descendents of the first plants that colonized land and reproduced with seeds, are rapidly going extinct because of invasive pests and habitat loss, especially those species endemic ...

Biology / Ecology

created Jul 13, 2010 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

What plant genes tell us about crop domestication

Anyone who has seen teosinte, the wild grass from which maize (corn) evolved, might be forgiven for assuming many genetic changes underlie the transformation of one plant to the other.

Biology / Biotechnology

created Jul 07, 2010 | popularity 4.2 / 5 (5) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Plant growth hormones: Antagonists cooperate

The two most important growth hormones of plants, so far considered antagonists, also work synergistically. The activities of auxin and cytokinin, key molecules for plant growth and the formation of organs, ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Jun 24, 2010 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Success with 'cisgenics' in forestry offers new tools for biotechnology

Forestry scientists at Oregon State University have demonstrated for the first time that the growth rate and other characteristics of trees can be changed through "cisgenics" - a type of genetic engineering ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Jun 08, 2010 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (9) | comments 10 | with audio podcast

Seeds of aflatoxin-resistant corn lines available

Six new corn inbred lines with resistance to aflatoxin contamination have been found to be free of seed-borne diseases foreign to the United States, and seeds of these lines are now available in the United States for further ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created May 20, 2010 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Scientists ID Bacterial Genes that Improve Plant Growth

You might think bacteria that "invade" trees are there to cause certain destruction. But like the helpful bacteria that live within our guts, some microbes help plants thrive. To find out what makes these ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created May 13, 2010 | popularity 4.4 / 5 (8) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

A new approach that saves eyesight and lives in the developing world

Two Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists are part of an international team that has found a way to boost the nutritional value of corn. This has the potential to reduce the number of children in developing countries ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created May 03, 2010 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

New evidence in plants shows micro-RNA can move

Ever since tiny bits of genetic material known as microRNA were first characterized in the early 1990s, scientists have been discovering just how important they are to regulating the activity of genes within cells.

Biology / Biotechnology

created Apr 21, 2010 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (7) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Tomato gene may fend banana against formidable fungus

(PhysOrg.com) -- Proteins from the fungus Cladosporium fulvum, which causes leaf blight in tomato plants, are very similar to the proteins of the fungus Mycosphaerella fijiensis, which causes the much-feared black Sigato ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Apr 13, 2010 | popularity 3 / 5 (2) | comments 0

Genetic key discovered to dramatically increase yields and improve taste of hybrid tomato plants

Spectacularly increased yields and improved taste have been achieved with hybrid tomato plants by researchers at the Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment at the Hebrew University and ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Apr 06, 2010 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (10) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Traces of early Native Americans -- in sunflower genes

New information about early Native Americans' horticultural practices comes not from hieroglyphs or other artifacts, but from a suite of four gene duplicates found in wild and domesticated sunflowers.

Biology / Biotechnology

created Apr 02, 2010 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (5) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Single gene dramatically boosts yield, sweetness in tomato hybrids

Giving tomato breeders and ketchup fans something to cheer about, a Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) scientist and his colleagues at the Hebrew University in Israel have identified a gene that pushes hybrid ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Mar 28, 2010 | popularity 3.9 / 5 (11) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Genome mapping technique speeds process of finding specific genes

(PhysOrg.com) -- A Purdue University scientist was part of a global team that has demonstrated a specialized mapping technique that could speed work in genomic fields by quickly finding genetic associations that shape an ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Mar 25, 2010 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (3) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Searching for genes behind a trait

A method pioneered to find the genetic basis of human diseases also holds promise for locating the genes behind important traits in plants, according to a study published online March 24 by the journal Nature.

Biology / Biotechnology

created Mar 24, 2010 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Dormant microbes promote diversity, serve environment: study

(PhysOrg.com) -- The ability of microbes, tiny organisms that do big jobs in our environment, to go dormant not only can save them from death and possible extinction but may also play a key role in promoting ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Mar 19, 2010 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast