November 210

Source: ISB News Report - November 2010

Author: Steven Penfield

Crop plant growth in well resourced fields is often limited simply by the temperature of the growing environment. Where plants are grown in glasshouses, winter heating is commonly a significant contributor to the cost of plant production. Hence in both situations there is interest in understanding how the relationship between environmental temperature and plant growth rate is established, and whether this can be modified either through conventional or fast-track breeding or biotechnological means. The SPATULA (SPT) gene has been reported to be responsible for decreasing Arabidopsis thaliana growth rates in response to low ambient temperatures. As spt mutants show no increase in freezing sensitivity, deletion of this gene could be a viable way to increase crop yields in temperate areas at cooler times of year.

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Website: http://www.isb.vt.edu

Published: November 19, 2010