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Department of Plant Sciences

 
Read more at: Jen McGaley wins award for innovative mycorrhizal research at ICOM 2024
Jen McGaley receiving her award at ICOM 2024

Jen McGaley wins award for innovative mycorrhizal research at ICOM 2024

19 August 2024

Jen McGaley, from the Cereal Symbiosis Group at the Crop Science Centre, has been awarded the ‘Best Paper in Applied Agricultural Mycorrhizal Research’ at the International Conference on Mycorrhiza (ICOM) 2024 . This recognition highlights Jen’s work in advancing our understanding of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) symbiosis...


Read more at: Uncovering the effectorome: new insights into plant-parasitic nematode infection strategies
The accompanying confocal 3D projection of DAPI- and HCR in situ-labelled pre-parasitic Heterodera schachtii visualises transcripts of parasitism effectors made within the gland cells. Image source: Dr Alexis L Sperling.

Uncovering the effectorome: new insights into plant-parasitic nematode infection strategies

12 August 2024

Researchers from the Plant-Parasite Interactions group at the Crop Science Centre have made a significant breakthrough in understanding how plant-parasitic nematodes infect crops. These tiny parasitic worms pose a serious threat to global food security by secreting special proteins, called effectors, from their pharyngeal...


Read more at: Next generation biosensor reveals gibberellin’s critical role in legume nitrogen-fixation
Next generation biosensor reveals gibberellin’s critical role in legume nitrogen-fixation

Next generation biosensor reveals gibberellin’s critical role in legume nitrogen-fixation

31 July 2024

A next generation biosensor has revealed gibberellin’s critical role in legume nitrogen-fixation – paving the way for more productive legume crops and self-fertilising cereals. Researchers at the University of Cambridge have demonstrated that the plant hormone gibberellin (GA) is essential for the formation and maturation...


Read more at: Cambridge researchers discover new regulators of photosynthesis that could facilitate crop improvements
Left: Marchantia control and RR-MYB double mutant plants. Right: Arabidopsis wild type and RR-MYB double mutant plants, Bottom: confocal microscopy images showing the reduced chloroplast size in the mutants.

Cambridge researchers discover new regulators of photosynthesis that could facilitate crop improvements

29 July 2024

Researchers from the University of Cambridge have discovered a new family of photosynthesis-controlling gene regulators which could impact crop development for sustainability and global food security. The study by Natasha Yelina and Eftychios Frangedakis was published in Cell on 23 July 2024. It was led by Professor Julian...


Read more at: Thousands of birds and fish threatened by mining for clean energy transition
gold-mine-in-rondonia-credit-david-edwards

Thousands of birds and fish threatened by mining for clean energy transition

26 July 2024

Our increasing demand for metals and minerals is putting over four thousand vertebrate species at risk, with the raw materials needed for clean energy infrastructure often located in global biodiversity hotspots, a study has found. New research has found that 4,642 species of vertebrate are threatened by mineral extraction...


Read more at: The ancient role of ARK in plant-fungi partnerships revealed
Rice plant colonised by the AM fungus Rhizophagus irregularis grown and imaged in the AM slide. The arbuscule is surrounded by a green fluorescent protein. 

The ancient role of ARK in plant-fungi partnerships revealed

22 July 2024

Researchers from the Cereal Symbiosis team within the Crop Science Centre have made significant strides in understanding one of the most crucial relationships in plant evolution: arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) symbiosis. This ancient partnership between fungi and plants is believed to be one of the key adaptations that...


Read more at: The role of bees in reducing plant virus transmission
Bumblebee visiting a flower on a BCMV-infected common bean plant. Photo by Alex Murphy.

The role of bees in reducing plant virus transmission

17 July 2024

New research from the University of Cambridge shows that bee-pollination reduces disease spread in plants and highlights the importance of environmental factors such as pollination in managing plant virus transmission. The study, published in Virology Journal on 28 June, looked at whether insect pollination could influence...


Read more at: Plants @ Cambridge Botanicon brings together plant scientists from across the University
Colleagues at the Botanicon. Photo by Kathy Grube. Botanicon T-shirts designed by Isobel Cole.

Plants @ Cambridge Botanicon brings together plant scientists from across the University

16 July 2024

This year’s Plants @ Cambridge Botanicon took place at St John's College on Friday 28 June. It brought together colleagues from across the plant biology network at Cambridge to consider the future of plant biology research. The event was organised by a team of early-career researchers from Plants @ Cambridge members...


Read more at: Alumni stories: Jen Bromley
Jen Bromley standing outside NASA Kennedy Space Centre head quarters

Alumni stories: Jen Bromley

8 July 2024

Studying Plant Sciences at Cambridge can open up a wealth of career opportunities. In this series, we hear from Plant Sciences alumni about their experiences of studying here, how it shaped their careers and what they are doing now. If you would like your alumni story featured, please email us at alumni@plantsci.cam.ac.uk...


Read more at: Alumni stories: Robert Bradburne
Robert Bradburne during invertebrate monitoring in a stream near Exeter with the local team

Alumni stories: Robert Bradburne

2 July 2024

Studying Plant Sciences at Cambridge can open up a wealth of career opportunities. In this series, we hear from Plant Sciences alumni about their experiences of studying here, how it shaped their careers and what they are doing now. If you would like your alumni story featured, please email us at alumni@plantsci.cam.ac.uk...