The sprouting of a seed is clearly a crucial stage in a plant’s life. Yet one part of the process has long been shrouded in mystery: How do seeds know when there’s enough water to germinate? Researchers recently reported the … Continue reading
Journal Club
Highlighting recent, timely papers selected by Academy member labs
Author Archives: Jyoti Madhusoodanan
Prion-like protein acts as water sensor in seeds
Categories: Cell Biology | Genetics | Journal Club | Plant Biology
Tagged Arabidopsis, FLOE1, germination, prion, seeds
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Country-level assessment hides big variations in soy’s carbon footprint
Analysts usually estimate a crop’s carbon footprint based on country-level factors. But that formulation isn’t adequate, according to a new analysis of soy exports from Brazil. Published in Global Environmental Change, the study tracked soy from specific production sites in … Continue reading
Categories: Agriculture | Climate science | Economic sciences | Environmental Sciences | Journal Club
Tagged Amazon rainforest, carbon emissions, carbon footprint, Cerrado, soybeans
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PREVIEW News Feature: To counter the pandemic, clinicians bank on repurposed drugs
Teams are pursuing a dizzying array of therapeutic strategies to stymie COVID-19. It’s not yet clear which approach, or combination of approaches, will work best. *Editor’s Note: We’re providing a preview of this content due to the urgent and rapidly … Continue reading
Categories: Cell Biology | Immunology | Infectious disease | Medical Sciences | News feature | Pharmacology
Tagged choloroquine, COVID-19, hydroxycholoroquine, novel coronavirus, pandemic, remdesivir, SARS-Cov-2, TMPRSS2
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Journal Club: Plants load extracellular vesicles with a new class of RNAs
A recent study in The Plant Cell found that plants release extracellular vesicles carrying a new class of RNA molecules, named “tiny RNAs.” The findings are among the first to reveal the contents of these vesicles, and may hint at … Continue reading
Categories: Biochemistry | Cell Biology | Journal Club | Plant Biology
Tagged animal cell, Arabidopsis, cell communication, microRNA, nucleotides, plant cell, siRNA, tiny RNA, vesicle
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Journal Club: Being less infectious pays off for lung pathogen
The human body is home to millions of commensal microbes, some of which—given the right circumstances—can cause disease. One such microbe, known as nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHi), infects the lungs of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a condition that … Continue reading
Categories: Infectious disease | Journal Club | Medical Sciences | Microbiology
Tagged bacteria, commensal, COPD, fadL, flu, NTHi
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Journal Club: Microglial protein trafficking could play a role in neurodegenerative disorders
Neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD) or Parkinson’s are associated with a build-up of insoluble, toxic forms of proteins such as amyloid or tau in the brain. Normally, intracellular protein complexes known as retromers help with recycling and trafficking … Continue reading
Journal Club: Enzyme helps to speedily create a key chemical bond in the lab, suggesting synthetic chemistry applications
With just a few chemical tweaks, cellular enzymes can turn some of the most common amino acids into unique compounds that possess antimicrobial or medicinal properties. But in the lab, it’s much harder to derive these molecules when using conventional … Continue reading
Categories: Biochemistry | Chemistry | Journal Club
Tagged GRiE, manzacidin C, Streptomyces griseus, synthetic chemistry
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Journal Club: Macrophages help regenerate ear parts in spiny mice
Salamander tails and fish fins are oft-cited examples of animals’ ability to regenerate a lost limb or organ. But one mammal—the African spiny mouse—has also emerged as a model of regenerative abilities. In a recent study, Ashley Seifert of the University … Continue reading
Categories: Applied Biological Sciences | Cell Biology | Immunology | Journal Club
Tagged macrophage, regeneration, salamander, spiny mouse
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Journal Club: ATP could help proteins dissolve in cells, prompting a rethink about its function and evolution
Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is widely considered biology’s “energy currency”. A crucial player in cell function, it stores and releases energy for enzymatic reactions in its phosphate bonds. But cells typically hoard amounts of ATP several hundred-fold higher than that needed … Continue reading
Categories: Biochemistry | Cell Biology | Journal Club
Tagged Alzheimer's disease, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, ATP, plaque
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Journal Club: Virus-infected plants create buzz among bees
A bout of a viral infection can leave tomato plants stunted and their leaves sickly. But it might offer a surprising reproductive boost: infected plants release a different smell than healthy ones, and that unique aroma can draw more bees … Continue reading
Journal Club: Removing an immune inhibitor helps protect against lethal fungal infections
Protecting cells from out-of-control immune reactions comes at a price: the same protein that quiets B and T cells to prevent autoimmune responses may also hinder the body’s fight against pathogens. Now researchers have found that in the case of … Continue reading
Categories: Immunology | Journal Club
Tagged candida albicans, cblb, dectin, fungus, ubiquitin
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