Publications by authors named "Smet I"

Plants continuously respond to changing environmental conditions to prevent damage and maintain optimal performance. To regulate gas exchange with the environment and to control abiotic stress relief, plants have pores in their leaf epidermis, called stomata. Multiple environmental signals affect the opening and closing of these stomata.

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Background: Differential target multiplexed spinal cord stimulation (DTM SCS) was shown to be superior to conventional SCS for treating chronic low back pain (CLBP) in subjects with persistent spinal pain syndrome with previous spinal surgery (PSPS-T2) or ineligible for it (PSPS-T1). This study reports 24-month efficacy and safety of DTM SCS vs. conventional medical management (CMM) in PSPS-T1 subjects across four European countries.

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Post-translational modifications (PTMs) greatly increase protein diversity and functionality. To help the plant research community interpret the ever-increasing number of reported PTMs, the Plant PTM Viewer (https://www.psb.

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Signal transduction relies largely on the activity of kinases and phosphatases that control protein phosphorylation. However, we still know very little about phosphorylation-mediated signaling networks. Plant MITOGEN-ACTIVATED PROTEIN KINASE KINASE KINASE KINASEs (MAP4Ks) have recently gained more attention, given their role in a wide range of processes, including developmental processes and stress signaling.

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Article Synopsis
  • Hypocotyl elongation is influenced by various signals, primarily in dark or warm conditions, with emphasis on protein degradation mechanisms that are still not well-understood.
  • A study on Arabidopsis seedlings at different temperatures showed a decrease in various proteins over time, indicating that factors like transcription, translation, and protein degradation play a role.
  • The research identified the LRR F-box protein SLOMO as a negative regulator of hypocotyl growth, with its activity affecting the degradation of growth regulators like DWF1 through ubiquitin-mediated processes, especially under warm temperature conditions.
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Interploidy hybridization between hexaploid and tetraploid genotypes occurred repeatedly during genomic introgression events throughout wheat evolution, and is commonly employed in wheat breeding programs. Hexaploid wheat usually serves as maternal parent because the reciprocal cross generates progeny with severe defects and poor seed germination, but the underlying mechanism is poorly understood. Here, we performed detailed analysis of phenotypic variation in endosperm between two interploidy reciprocal crosses arising from tetraploid (Triticum durum, AABB) and hexaploid wheat (Triticum aestivum, AABBDD).

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Article Synopsis
  • Changes in weather patterns, such as drought and rising temperatures, negatively impact crop growth and productivity.
  • Most research has focused on single stress conditions, but plants often face multiple stresses, which can influence their growth and responses differently.
  • This mini-review specifically examines the combined effects of drought and heat stress, discussing current research findings, knowledge gaps, and future research directions.
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Article Synopsis
  • Proteins play a key role in managing cellular processes by interpreting and responding to environmental signals, making their regulation essential for an organism's growth and survival.
  • Posttranslational modifications, often facilitated by specific "writer" proteins, help regulate protein activities, with phosphorylation being one of the most common modifications, typically carried out by protein kinases.
  • The chapter outlines a detailed method for assessing the phosphorylation profile of a target protein in plants, combining an in situ phosphorylation test with mass spectrometry techniques.
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We tell the story of the complex history and global distribution of the very popular banana and illustrate this with amazing depictions by artists and scientists. In addition, we discuss the major changes that occurred during domestication and the risks associated with maintaining a monoculture.

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In 1998, Bill Gray and colleagues showed that warm temperatures trigger arabidopsis hypocotyl elongation in an auxin-dependent manner. This laid the foundation for a vibrant research discipline. With several active members of the 'thermomorphogenesis' community, we here reflect on 25 years of elevated ambient temperature research and look to the future.

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Molecular biology aims to understand cellular responses and regulatory dynamics in complex biological systems. However, these studies remain challenging in non-model species due to poor functional annotation of regulatory proteins. To overcome this limitation, we develop a multi-layer neural network that determines protein functionality directly from the protein sequence.

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Endocytosis regulates the turnover of cell surface localized receptors, which are crucial for plants to rapidly respond to stimuli. The evolutionary ancient TPLATE complex (TPC) plays an essential role in endocytosis in Arabidopsis plants. Knockout or knockdown of single TPC subunits causes male sterility and seedling lethality phenotypes, complicating analysis of the roles of TPC during plant development.

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ADAPTOR-ASSOCIATED PROTEIN KINASE1 (AAK1) is a known regulator of clathrin-mediated endocytosis in mammals. Human AAK1 phosphorylates the μ2 subunit of the ADAPTOR PROTEIN-2 (AP-2) complex (AP2M) and plays important roles in cell differentiation and development. Previous interactome studies discovered the association of AAK1 with AP-2 in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), but its function was unclear.

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Climate change-induced temperature fluctuations impact agricultural productivity through short-term intense heat waves or long-term heat stress. Plants have evolved sophisticated strategies to deal with heat stress. Understanding perception and transduction of heat signals from outside to inside cells is essential to improve plant thermotolerance.

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Throughout the exploration of the soil, roots interact with their environment and adapt to different conditions. Directional root growth is guided by asymmetric molecular patterns but how these become established or are dynamically regulated is poorly understood. Asymmetric gradients of the phytohormone auxin are established during root gravitropism, mainly through directional transport mediated by polarized auxin transporters.

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Article Synopsis
  • - Greenhouse gas emissions are causing a climate crisis that needs urgent action to reduce their harmful impacts on life on Earth.
  • - Agriculture and land use account for about 25% of total GHG emissions, making it crucial for plant scientists to lead efforts in sustainable practices.
  • - The PlantACT! initiative outlines a strategic plan for plant scientists to develop solutions in various time frames and identifies necessary changes in personal behavior, institutions, and funding to support these efforts.
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Article Synopsis
  • Reversible protein phosphorylation is crucial for plant processes like protein activity and signaling, particularly during shoot organogenesis.
  • Short exposure to the histidine kinase inhibitor TCSA negatively affects regeneration in various plant accessions by disrupting cytokinin signaling pathways.
  • Mass spectrometry analysis shows that TCSA alters a wide range of phosphoproteins linked to essential functions like protein modification, transcription, and organ development, highlighting potential new factors in plant regeneration.
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Guard cells control the opening of stomatal pores in the leaf surface, with the use of a network of protein kinases and phosphatases. Loss of function of the CBL-interacting protein kinase 23 (CIPK23) was previously shown to decrease the stomatal conductance, but the molecular mechanisms underlying this response still need to be clarified. CIPK23 was specifically expressed in Arabidopsis guard cells, using an estrogen-inducible system.

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Small secreted peptides (SSPs) are important signals for cell-to-cell communication in plant, involved in a variety of growth and developmental processes, as well as responses to stresses. While a large number of SSPs have been identified and characterized in various plant species, little is known about SSPs in wheat, one of the most important cereal crops. In this study, 4,981 putative SSPs were identified on the wheat genome, among which 1,790 TaSSPs were grouped into 38 known SSP families.

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Plants in most natural habitats are exposed to a continuously changing environment, including fluctuating temperatures. Temperature variations can trigger acclimation or tolerance responses, depending on the severity of the signal. To guarantee food security under a changing climate, we need to fully understand how temperature response and tolerance are triggered and regulated.

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SignificanceChemical genetics, which investigates biological processes using small molecules, is gaining interest in plant research. However, a major challenge is to uncover the mode of action of the small molecules. Here, we applied the cellular thermal shift assay coupled with mass spectrometry (CETSA MS) to intact cells and showed that bikinin, the plant-specific glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3) inhibitor, changed the thermal stability of some of its direct targets and putative GSK3-interacting proteins.

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The epidermal pavement cell shape in Arabidopsis is driven by chemical and mechanical cues that direct partitioning mechanisms required for the establishment of the lobe- and indentation-defining polar sites. Brassinosteroid (BR) hormones regulate pavement cell morphogenesis, but the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Here, we identified two PLECKSTRIN HOMOLOGY GTPase-ACTIVATING proteins (PHGAPs) as substrates of the GSK3-like kinase BR-INSENSITIVE2 (BIN2).

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