VIB and UGent Researchers Identify Key Mechanisms of Cell Division in Plants

Geert de Jaeger, a scientist from VIB and Ghent University believes that "The major driving force behind plant growth is cell division, and if you understand the machinery that governs this process, you have the key to increase agricultural yield." Towards this end, the research team developed a technology platform based on ‘Tandem Affinity Purification' (TAP).

TAP is a combination of transgenic technology, protein purification, mass spectrometry and bioinformatics. The VIB and Ghent University team including Jelle Van Leene and Erwin Witters of the University of Antwerp conducted TAP in 300 experiments in four years that allowed them to complete and publish the complete map of the machinery behind cell division in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. In the process, more than 100 new proteins were discovered that are involved in cell division.

The results of the research is published in the journal Molecular Systems Biology and is expected to be an important tool in plant research.

See the original article at  http://www.vib.be/NR/rdonlyres/02CE3C9E-C278-486C-981F-4D5742148427/3136/20100811_ENG_Van_Leene_Jelle_Tap_web.pdf