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Molecular Plant Science Archives - The Global Plant Council

New insights into how phytochromes help plants sense and react to light, temperature

By | News, Plant Science

Plants contain several types of specialized light-sensitive proteins that measure light by changing shape upon light absorption. Chief among these are the phytochromes. Phytochromes help plants detect light direction, intensity and duration; the time of day; whether it is the beginning, middle or end of a season; and even the color of light, which is important for avoiding shade from other plants. Remarkably, phytochromes also help plants detect temperature.

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How plants leave behind their parents’ genomic baggage

By | News, Plant Science

Passing down a healthy genome is a critical part of creating viable offspring. But what happens when you have harmful modifications in your genome that you don’t want to pass down? Baby plants have evolved a method to wipe the slate clean and reinstall only the modifications that they need to grow and develop. Now researchers discovered one of the genes responsible for reinstalling modifications in a baby plant’s genome.

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