plant sciences
July 14, 2017
Walter Gassmann #IAmScience
Walter Gassmann, the new Interim Director of Bond LSC. | Photo by Roger Meissen, Bond LSC By Mary Jane Rogers | Bond LSC “#IAmScience because science is the best way to solve problems and help people. And the laws of nature write fascinating stories.” Walter Gassmann, the new Interim Director of Bond LSC, has been an important part of the MU science community for more than a decade. He’s a member of the Interdisciplinary Plant Group, a researcher in Bond LSC and a professor in the Division of Plant Sciences within the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural…
June 7, 2017
The evolution of a corn geneticist
By Jennifer Lu |Bond LSC Paula McSteen is a professor of biological sciences at MU and a researcher at the Bond Life Sciences Center. | Photograph by Jennifer Lu, Bond LSC When developmental plant geneticist Paula McSteen thinks about the specimens she studies, one word comes to mind: potential. She thought it as she stood in the midst of the first corn field she ever planted as a post-doctoral fellow in corn genetics. She thinks it as she counts kernels from corn crosses that will be sent to Hawaii, a hotspot for corn geneticists looking to…
March 17, 2017
Planting a seed for sciences
Jinghong Chen | Bond Life Sciences Center Plants on the left grow with rhizobia bacteria, one type of fixing nitrogen bacteria, in the greenhouse, while the plants on the right grow without the bacteria. | photo by Jinghong Chen, Bond LSC Since eight years old, Beverly Agtuca knew she wanted to be a scientist. A trip to Philippines changed Agtuca, an American-born Filipino, and inspired her passion on plants. “My grandma always told me to work in the field all day so that they can have enough food for us to eat,” Agtuca said. “The life…
Oct. 8, 2015
Understanding spit
Scientists find how nematodes use key hormones to take over root cells Roger Meissen | Bond Life Sciences Center This Arabidopsis root shows how the beet cyst nematode activates cytokinin signaling in the syncytium 10 days after infection. The root fluoresces green when the TCSn gene associated with cytokinin activation is turned on because it is fused with a jellyfish protein that acts as a reporter signal. (N=nematode; S=Syncytium). Contributed by Carola De La Torre This is a story about spit. Not just any spit, but the saliva of cyst nematodes, a parasite that literally sucks…
April 25, 2014
Frogs help researchers find genetic mechanism for mildew susceptibility in grapevine
Powdery mildew on a cabernet sauvignon grapevine leaf. | USDA Grape genetics publications and research A princess kisses a frog and it turns into a prince, but when a scientist uses a frog to find out more information about a grapevine disease, it turns into the perfect tool narrowing in on the cause of crop loss of Vitis vinifera, the world’s favorite connoisseur wine-producing varietal. MU researchers recently published a study that uncovered a specific gene in the Vitis vinifera varietal Cabernet Sauvingon, that contributes to its susceptibility to a widespread plant disease, powdery mildew.