Abstract Trade and communication are fundamental tenets of our globalised societies, but they are also subject to a multitude of factors that can impact them. Recent geopolitical crises around the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab al-Mandab Strait have, for instance, highlighted how we depend on the movement of goods through maritime trade routes. As these distant bottlenecks can be open for trade or slam shut by blockades, they powerfully shape the growth and robustness of our economies, as well as our local lives. We rarely consider that something very similar happens in plants all the time. With far less media coverage, plant cells constantly adjust transport and communication between them in response to diverse scenarios. Exchange processes are indeed a common feature across biological scales. Plasmodesmata are microscopic ‘straits’ for the direct transfer of nutrients and signals between plant cells. They are carefully regulated and subject to challenges that can interfere with their traffic. These hidden exchanges are fundamental for both plants and us, as they profoundly impact the growth and robustness of the crops and plant species we rely on.
Abstract The biomolecular life science community is a vibrant mix of individuals from all around the world, each having their unique background, beliefs, and lived experience. A learned society as big as the Biochemical Society wants to understand who they are supporting to address the community's needs and to make sure the provided support is equitable. The Society also needs to communicate its strategy clearly and transparently so that members can understand the reasons behind the support offered. Every year, the Biochemical Society conducts a survey on equality, diversity, and inclusion. They tasked us to contemplate the outcome of the 2025 survey. This is an ideal opportunity to look at quantitative data and to complement emerging views with personal narrative.
Background/Objectives: Wild chicory (Cichorium intybus L.) is a widespread species that produces blue flowers, helping to add colour to meadows in both natural and human-altered environments, while plants with white flowers are rare in nature. This species plays a significant ecological role and has given rise to cultivated horticultural varieties, while retaining culinary and medicinal value in its wild form. From a biochemical perspective, the synthesis and accumulation of anthocyanins are significant characteristics; however, there is a lack of published data on the genes involved in these processes within the vegetative and floral organs of wild chicory. The study aims to identify candidate structural genes and regulatory factors that may be involved in a white-flower phenotype and to determine whether alterations in the expression of genes associated with anthocyanin biosynthesis contribute to the absence of floral pigmentation. Methods: In this study, a set of genes encoding biosynthetic enzymes and regulatory factors was isolated. Their sequences and transcription levels were evaluated, with particular attention paid to the corollas of flowers from both the common blue and the rare white-flowered forms. Morphological analyses of the floral organs were conducted to identify differences between these forms, while a genetic analysis was performed to clarify the inheritance of the colourless flower trait. Results: Plants with white flowers lack anthocyanins in both their floral and vegetative tissues. The results revealed a distinct gene expression profile between the two morphotypes. In white flowers, expression levels of the Anthocyanidin synthase (ANS) and Flavonoid 3′,5′-hydroxylase (F3′5′H) genes were markedly reduced, along with a significant decrease in the activity of the bHLH-like regulatory gene. The colourless flower trait was consistent with monogenic recessive inheritance. Conclusions: In wild chicory, the white-flowered mutant may be attributable to a putative transcriptional dysregulation of the anthocyanin biosynthetic pathway. However, it will be necessary to analyse the regulatory regions and promoters of differentially expressed genes. Genome-wide transcriptomic approaches will be useful for identifying and reconstructing the complete gene network involved in anthocyanin biosynthesis.
Abstract Our inflammatory reactions start with the release of oxylipins—oxidised lipid molecules—from the injured cells. Plant cells react to injury in the same way, but, in contrast to us, their oxylipins developed into a full-fledged chemical communication system powering cell-to-cell, intraspecies and interspecies signalling. Fungi use a similar chemical language, and even dictyostelid slime moulds seem to possess it. This biochemical ‘Esperanto’ evolved independently multiple times when multicellularity arose in different lineages. We try to hypothesise why oxylipins evolved recurrently as the biochemical ‘language’ of life—and show how pathogens exploit it to jump between humans and plants.
Abstract Throughout history, scientific breakthroughs have often followed the invention of new tools. From the first microscopes revealing an unseen microbial world to modern artificial intelligence predicting protein structures, advances in technology have continually redefined the questions scientists are able to ask. Yet, one of biology’s current frontiers remains largely invisible. Hidden within opaque soil, plant roots engage in countless interactions with microorganisms that can nourish crops, protect them from disease, or devastate global food production. For centuries, these encounters have remained frustratingly difficult to observe directly. Now, a technology—originally developed to manipulate tiny volumes of liquid—is beginning to change that. Microfluidic ‘Lab-on-a-Chip’ devices recreate simplified soil environments within transparent chambers, allowing researchers to watch roots and microbes interact in real time with high precision. In the present article, we explore how the convergence of microscopy and microfluidics is transforming our understanding of plant–microbe interactions, tracing the evolution of on-chip technologies, and examining how the next generation of microfluidic devices could illuminate the hidden stages of microbial space searching, root colonisation, and symbiosis.
