Plant Biology

A pain-causing compound in the Australian stinging tree has applications for cancer treatment, but it’s difficult to harvest enough to study. Whitehead Institute scientists present a way to synthesize the compound in the leaves of harmless tobacco plants, and potentially in a culture dish.

Evolution is often furthered through conflict. New research from the lab of Whitehead Institute Member Mary Gehring zeros in on how parent plants butt heads over control of gene expression in the nutrient rich tissue called the endosperm.

Whitehead Institute Member Jing-Ke Weng studies plant metabolism, the set of processes plants use to produce thousands of unique molecules, many of which have potent medicinal properties. The Weng lab is hunting for more of these molecules in the wild, and developing strategies to sustainably produce plant molecules already of interest at scale.

Researchers in the lab of Whitehead Institute Member Mary Gehring created a new way to study a family of enzymes that control gene expression in plants. Their method reveals how these enzymes affect key decisions in plant development, including when to produce flowers.

Some of the most important tools in researchers’ toolkits are the model organisms they use to study biological questions. How do researchers decide which species, out of the millions that exist, to develop as models? Whitehead Institute researchers have had a hand in establishing and promoting the use of several model organisms over the years.

The new system streamlines the process of fermenting plant sugar to fuel by helping yeast survive industrial toxins.

If we imagine the cell as an orchestra, with many musicians who each have a small part to play, then what conducts all of these musicians and keeps them organized and harmonized as they play a symphony?