Undergraduates Discover Mechanism Tied to Plant Height
August 10, 2016| |
An undergraduate class at Purdue University has discovered a key mechanism that keeps plants short. Graduate student Norman Best led the eight undergraduate students and identified a mutation that leads to small stature in the dwarfed Sunflower variety Sunspot.
The team identified a group of proteins containing an amino acid sequence that spells 'DELLA' as responsible for suppressing Sunspot's stem growth. When gibberellic acid, a plant growth hormone is perceived, it dislodges DELLA proteins from DNA and leads to stalk growth. Sunspot contains a mutated DELLA sequence in one of these proteins. Gibberellic acid is unable to remove the mutant protein, suppressing growth.
For more details, read the news release at Purdue University website.
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