Researchers have identified a novel molecular module, the PEP2-PEPR2 signalling pathway, that regulates iron-deficiency responses in plants. This discovery reveals how plants integrate growth and iron acquisition, offering insights into nutrient homeostasis and potential strategies for improving crop yield and nutritional quality in iron-deficient soils globally.
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In a detailed interview to the Science Chronicle, Dr. Sundaram Acharya formerly with CSIR-IGIB and currently a JSPS postdoctoral fellow at the University of Tokyo, and co-inventor of enFnCas9, explains how and why the indigenously developed CRISPR genome editing system using the enhanced FnCas9 (enFnCas9) variants fare better than the existing Cas9 tool — about twice the DNA cleavage speed, a nearly 3.5-fold broader target range in the human genome, and much stronger editing activity with excellent genome-wide specificity
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The biggest problem with conventional breeding programmes and the cutting-edge genetic engineering is that only a small set of genes are programmed to behave differently and the impact of that is also limited. On the other hand, with identification of a global switch for salt-stress, this study opens a new realm of possibilities
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Chrysanthemum will flower only when the nights are long enough. Lighting the fields using low-intensity bulbs during the night resets the plant’s clock and stops the flower signal, so the crop keeps building height and branches. When it is ready for the market window, the lights are switched off, giving true long nights. The buds initiate together and a uniform flush arrives in about six to 11 weeks
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When plants face abiotic stresses such as drought, salinity or heat, specific epigenetic marks appear at stress-response genes. Later, these marks help plants mount faster with a stronger defense system.
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NexCAR19, approved in 2023, is India’s first home-grown CAR-T cell therapy for blood cancers. NexCAR19 is not an isolated success story. Indian institutions are working on gene and cell therapies for haemophilia A, sickle cell disease, and age-related macular degeneration (AMD)
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The gene-edited lines were channelising the extra phosphate absorbed by the roots to produce more seeds by increasing the number of panicles — the fruiting body which bears seeds — leading to an increase in yield by 20%. The researchers analysed the seed size, seed dimension, seed length, starch and phosphate content, and found the seed dimension or seed quality to be normal
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Researchers at the Institute for Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine (inStem), in Bengaluru have developed an anti-insecticide fabric that
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Researchers at Tel-Aviv University have found plants making airborne emission of ultrasound screams when subjected to stress. They suspect that
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Of the over 6,400 samples collected from 1,100 towns/cities in India, 93% were found to be safe. But 5.7% had
Read MoreIIT Bombay researchers have fabricated a sensor that can detect zinc over a wide concentration range — 0.1-500 ppm. The
Read MoreContinued global warming may adversely affect banana yield in India by 2050. With 29% of the world’s production, India is
Read MoreIIT Bombay researchers have found the reason why the summer monsoon rainfall has shifted towards northwest India and intensification of
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