Tags: Thinc. at UGA

photo of men with plants
Researchers increase diversity in plants by reactivating dormant genes

A new breeding technique using a plant's own DNA could produce crops that are more resistant to drought and disease: A team of University of Georgia researchers has developed a new way to breed plants with better traits. By introducing a human protein into the model plant species Arabidopsis thaliana, researchers found that they could selectively activate silenced genes already present within the plant. Using this method to increase diversity…

photo of man and woman with plants
Researchers identify gene to improve plant yield, growth for biofuels

A research team led by professor of biochemistry and molecular biology Debra Mohnen has discovered that manipulation of the same gene in poplar trees and switchgrass produced plants that grow better and are more efficiently converted to biofuels: Due to the composition of plant cell walls, plant material is not efficiently broken down or deconstructed to the basic sugars that are converted to biofuels. In a paper published today…

photo of man with corn stalks
Genetics professor to lead corn pangenome project

Distinguished Research Professor Kelly Dawe in the department of genetics is principal investigator on a new project to sequence the genetic diversity of the world's largest cash crop: When the human genome was first sequenced in 2001, the project focused on a single individual. Since that time, several new genomes have been assembled and additional genetic data have been generated for thousands of individuals, producing a more complete picture…

two men with fMRI machine
Researchers investigate how plant compounds affect brain activity

The power of technology is one thing, but novel uses of great tools to investigate complex questions is connecting researchers with new insights, like this new study from the department of psychology: The same compounds that give plants and vegetables their vibrant colors might be able to bolster brain functioning in older adults, according to a recent study from the University of Georgia. The research from the department of psychology is the…

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Chemist Michael K. Johnson named Regents Professor

The 2016 recipient of the Regents Professorship is chemist Michael K. Johnson, an internationally renowned pioneer in the development of methods for investigating the biological properties of metals that are essential to life processes in plants and animals.  Regents Professorships are bestowed by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia on faculty members whose scholarship or creative activity is recognized nationally…

man in lab with plants
When thieving weeds attack

An international group of scientists that includes assistant professor of genetics Dave Nelson has discovered how parasitic plants, which steal their nutrients from another living plant, evolved the ability to detect and attack their hosts. Their findings were  published recently in the journal Science: As plant roots grow, they release hormones called strigolactones into the soil. This is a signal that normally helps fungi form a…

earth photo from space
The Earth as a Battery

Analogies can be highly effective expressions of a point that seems to go missing and/or is very difficult to understand - take the point, for example, that the Earth's resources are indeed exhaustible and need to be conserved, protected, enhanced and replenished: "You can think of the Earth like a battery that has been charged very slowly over billions of years," said the study's lead author, John Schramski, an associate professor in UGA's…


Examining the history of plants

It sounds like the title of a cable documentary (a good one! And maybe it is) but scientists from North America, Europe and China have published a paper in PNAS that reveals important details about key transitions in the evolution of plant life on Earth: From strange and exotic algae, mosses, ferns, trees and flowers growing deep in steamy rainforests to the grains and vegetables humans eat and the ornamental plants adorning people's homes, all…


Study sees coevolution between invasive, native species

Coevolution is the change of a biological object triggered by the change of a related object. And up until now there has been little evidence of it driving changes in Earth's history, though that, too, seems to be changing: A new University of Georgia study shows that some native clearweed plants have evolved resistance to invasive garlic mustard plants—and that the invasive plants appear to be waging a counterattack. The study, published…
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