Of the major food crops, only rice is currently able to survive flooding. Thanks to new research, that could soon change -- good news for a world in which rains are increasing in both frequency and intensity.
The Asian citrus psyllid is the bogeyman of the citrus industry. Its appearance in fields is a dark harbinger for farmers, for carried within this insect is the bacteria Candidatus Liberibacter, the cause of citrus greening disease. In a study published in Scientific Reports, UC Davis researchers report that an acetic acid-based, slow-release trap is capable of capturing Asian citrus psyllids even when the insect populations are low.
In a new publication in The Plant Cell — “Chloroplast Outer Membrane β-Barrel Proteins Use Components of the General Import Apparatus” — authors Philip Day, Steven Theg, and Kentaro Inoue, all at University of California, Davis, determined how β-barrel proteins are sorted to the correct location in plant chloroplast envelopes, which have two membranes.
In a study appearing in Nature Communications, researchers identified the function of a key protein that regulates plant immunity. The fundamental research could eventually lead to agricultural practices capable of endowing crops with broad-spectrum resistance against pathogens.
During his career, Savithramma Dinesh-Kumar has published more than 100 research papers and reviews and has received many accolades. For his excellence in molecular plant pathology research, Dinesh-Kumar recently received the Noel T. Keen Award from The American Phytopathological Society.
Educators from Osaka University and UC Davis are proud to announce the launch of a new biotechnology research and training program between Japan and the United States. Graduate students from both universities will gain access to world-class research facilities and professional training across many areas.
Growing up in Germany, Philipp Zerbe knew he wanted to be a biologist by the time he was 5 years old. In fact, he scribbled the decision to become a ‘Biologe’ down on paper, which his parents kept—and gifted to him upon becoming an assistant professor of plant biology in the College of Biological Sciences at UC Davis in 2014.
Scientists have successfully sequenced the coast redwood and giant sequoia genomes, completing the first major milestone of a five-year project to develop the tools necessary to study these forests’ genomic diversity.
Plant biology Ph.D. student and UC Davis Grad Slam winner Katherine Murphy studies medicinal terpenes found in corn that could help bolster other crops' defenses. She’ll compete in the University of California Grad Slam Finals on May 10 in San Francisco.
UC Grad Slam is an annual contest in which master’s and Ph.D. students across UC campuses compete to sum up their research for a general audience. Learn more about Grad Slam Finalist Katherine Murphy, a plant biology graduate student.
