Fake news blues: A GUS staining protocol to reduce false-negative data.

The β-glucuronidase gene, (), has remained a favorite reporter gene in plants since its introduction in 1987 for its stability and versatility in a variety of fluorometric, spectrophotometric, and histochemical techniques. One of the most popular uses is as a reporter gene for visualizing endogenous promoter activities within plant tissues. Despite this popularity, specific protocols for minimizing nonrepresentative staining patterns, including false negatives, in challenging tissue types are not common.

Searching for a Match: Structure, Function and Application of Sequence-Specific RNA-Binding Proteins.

Plants encode over 1800 RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) that modulate a myriad of steps in gene regulation from chromatin organization to translation, yet only a small number of these proteins and their target transcripts have been functionally characterized. Two classes of eukaryotic RBPs, pentatricopeptide repeat (PPR) and pumilio/fem-3 binding factors (PUF), recognize and bind to specific sequential RNA sequences through protein-RNA interactions. These modular proteins possess helical structural units containing key residues with high affinity for specific nucleotides, whose sequential order determines binding to a specific target RNA sequence.

Comparative analyses of C₄ and C₃ photosynthesis in developing leaves of maize and rice.

C₄ and C₃ photosynthesis differ in the efficiency with which they consume water and nitrogen. Engineering traits of the more efficient C₄ photosynthesis into C₃ crops could substantially increase crop yields in hot, arid conditions. To identify differences between C₄ and C₃ photosynthetic mechanisms, we profiled metabolites and gene expression in the developing leaves of Zea mays (maize), a C₄ plant, and Oryza sativa (rice), a C₃ plant, using a statistical method named the unified developmental model (UDM).

A low-cost library construction protocol and data analysis pipeline for Illumina-based strand-specific multiplex RNA-seq.

The emergence of NextGen sequencing technology has generated much interest in the exploration of transcriptomes. Currently, Illumina Inc. (San Diego, CA) provides one of the most widely utilized sequencing platforms for gene expression analysis.