Study identifies new temperature sensing mechanism in plants
A protein called phytochrome B, which can sense light and temperature, triggers plant growth and controls flowering time. How it does so is not fully understood.
A protein called phytochrome B, which can sense light and temperature, triggers plant growth and controls flowering time. How it does so is not fully understood.
Plants & Animals
Apr 4, 2020
3
392
(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists of many varied backgrounds have been hard at work in recent years trying to figure out a way to control the intricate processes that go on in cells so as to allow them to manipulate them to do ...
The seeds of a plant are relatively well protected against harmful environmental influences, while a seedling is very vulnerable. Therefore, plants in the early stage of development must closely control their seed germination: ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 30, 2022
0
89
Sunlight is the basis for all life on Earth so it should come as no surprise that many organisms have developed complex systems for detecting the quality and quantity of light in their environment. Plants, fungi, and many ...
Cell & Microbiology
Sep 19, 2014
0
0
Copious corn growing in tiny backyard plots? Roses blooming in December? Thanks to technology that the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Richard Vierstra has been developing for years, these things may soon be possible. And ...
Biotechnology
Jul 30, 2014
0
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at the University of California, San Diego - led by 2008 Nobel-Prize winner Roger Tsien, PhD - have shown that bacterial proteins called phytochromes can be engineered into infrared-fluorescent ...
Biochemistry
May 7, 2009
0
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- When the first warm rays of springtime sunshine trigger a burst of new plant growth, it's almost as if someone flicked a switch to turn on the greenery and unleash a floral profusion of color. Opening a window ...
Biotechnology
May 31, 2010
0
0
Scientists have revealed intricate structural changes in plants, fungi and bacteria in response to light, according to a new study published today in the open-access journal eLife.
Biochemistry
Mar 31, 2020
0
157
Light provides the energy that plants and other photosynthetic organisms need to grow, which ultimately yields the metabolites that feed all other organisms on the planet. Plants also rely on light cues for developing their ...
Biotechnology
Dec 17, 2019
0
81
Plants contain several types of specialized light-sensitive proteins that measure light by changing shape upon light absorption. Chief among these are the phytochromes.
Plants & Animals
May 25, 2021
0
21
Phytochrome is a photoreceptor, a pigment that plants use to detect light. It is sensitive to light in the red and far-red region of the visible spectrum. Many flowering plants use it to regulate the time of flowering based on the length of day and night (photoperiodism) and to set circadian rhythms. It also regulates other responses including the germination of seeds (photoblasty), elongation of seedlings, the size, shape and number of leaves, the synthesis of chlorophyll, and the straightening of the epicotyl or hypocotyl hook of dicot seedlings. It is found in the leaves of most plants.
Biochemically, phytochrome is a protein with a bilin chromophore.
Phytochrome has been found in most plants including all higher plants; very similar molecules have been found in several bacteria. A fragment of a bacterial phytochrome now has a solved three-dimensional protein structure.
Other plant photoreceptors include cryptochromes and phototropins, which are sensitive to light in the blue and ultra-violet regions of the spectrum.
This text uses material from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA