Hope to see all of you (again) at our international #BT2026

organized by #MBP2026 @molplantsci.bsky.social
co-host Christopher Grefen

📍 @ruhr-uni-bochum.de in Bochum, Germany.
📆 6 – 10 September 2026
bsky.app/profile/plan...

bioRxiv: Plasma membrane nanoscale dynamics of Arabidopsis leucine-rich repeat receptor kinase complexes (2026) Plasma membrane-localized receptors operate as dynamic signaling complexes and integrative networks, yet the spatial and temporal regulation of these interactions remain largely unknown. Here, by analyzing the components of a minimal Arabidopsis leucine-rich repeat receptor kinase network, we describe the differential diffusion and organization of receptor complex components and unveil the nanoscale spatial and temporal logic underlying the formation of receptor kinase complexes. The ligand-binding receptors FLS2 and BRI1, and the accessory receptor BIR3, are organized in plasma membrane nanodomains, within which the co-receptor BAK1 diffuses and is spatially arrested upon ligand perception. BAK1 spatial arrest relies on extracellular domain (ECD)-ECD interactions but does not require receptor complex activation. Mathematical modelling, single molecule imaging and bio-assays infer that accessory receptors maintain a dynamic pool of co-receptors in the vicinity of ligand-binding receptors to promote ligand-induced complex formation and signaling. We propose that ligand-induced receptor kinase complex formation is a deterministic process defined by the relative nanoscale spatial positioning of individual signaling and regulatory components.

New Preprint: Plasma membrane nanoscale dynamics of Arabidopsis leucine-rich repeat receptor kinase complexes (2026)

https://www.tsl.ac.uk/publications/164874

Registration for the 13th PhD School on Plant Development is open! 🌾 🔬 🌺 🧬 🌵 🧪

Deadline: June 30, 2026
Link to registration form forms.gle/tbmUxaw2vmEn...
Cost: €350.- (incl. board, lodging and social event)
For details re payment and abstracts see form or homepage raissiglab.org/plantdevosch...

Great to see this meeting continued! This was awesome as a PhD student. Thank you for organizing this!

"From industrial Past to Green Future" written around an ancient industry tower typical for the region together with a plant changing colours from blue to green is the motto of the German Society for Plant Sciences international Conference, the Botanik-Tagung, 2026 in Bochum Germany, that brings together plant scientists from several scientific disciplines. The logo highlights the structural change of the Ruhr area, from coal mining + heavy industries to the increasingly important issues of climate protection, sustainability + preservation of biodiversity, with plant sciences at the forefront of this transformation.

#PlantSciConfi

Registration open for
International Conference of our German Society for Plant Sciences
Botanik-Tagung #BT2026
in #Bochum, Germany
6 – 10 September 2026
www.deutsche-botanische-gesellschaft.de/u/82bsBT2026

The actin cytoskeleton is required to maintain plant cell division orientation against cellular geometry Actin guides plant cell division, shaping tissues in ways that defy geometric constraints.

What a treat to see the work from Camila Goldy @camilagoldy.bsky.social et al., @rdplab.bsky.social @ensdelyon.bsky.social now published 🫶

www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

New Brief Communication: "A CRISPR-based sequence proximity binding protein labelling system for scanning upstream regulatory proteins" rdcu.be/eZLUP

CRISPR-based proximity labelling system to profile DNA-binding proteins such as PIF4 transcription factor .

CRISPR-Cas–mediated heritable chromosome fusions in Arabidopsis The genome of Arabidopsis thaliana consists of 10 chromosomes. By inducing CRISPR-Cas–mediated breaks at subcentromeric and subtelomeric sequences, we fused entire chromosome arms, obtaining two eight...

A team led by @kit.edu and with significant participation from @leibnizipk.bsky.social has succeeded for the first time in specifically altering the chromosome number of Arabidopsis using CRISPR Cas - without adversely affecting plant growth.

www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Autoinhibitory calcium ATPases regulate the calcium gradient required for rapid polarized growth, say Samantha Ryken, Magdalena Bezanilla and colleagues (Dartmouth College): rupress.org/jcb/article/...

#PlantBiology #Trafficking #Cytoskeleton

Antagonism between blue and red light-signalling controls thallus flatness in Marchantia polymorpha www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.11....

Rab5 GTPases mediate the targeting of ROP signalling to establish polarity for pollen germination - Nature Plants Rab5 GTPases deliver RopGEF8 from endosomes to the pollen plasma membrane, establishing polarity for germination. This crosstalk between trafficking and signalling GTPases is crucial for the reproduct...

Rab5 GTPases mediate the targeting of ROP signalling to establish polarity for pollen germination
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Now, Maria Dolores Lopez Bueno from @philipp-denninger.bsky.social lab in Munich is telling us more about the evolution of novel RHO OF PLANTS signalling activators during the adaptation from water to land #MAdLand2025

MSL10 is a high-sensitivity mechanosensor in the tactile sense of the Venus flytrap - Nature Communications The Venus flytrap, a carnivorous plant, catches prey by sensing touch. Here, the authors show that DmMSL10 functions as a high-sensitivity mechanosensor in sensory hairs, initiating long-range calcium and electrical signals required for trap closure.

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Next PLANT PEPTIDE AND RECEPTOR MEETING will be in Muenchen in 2026 organized by @julien-gronnier.bsky.social and friends. #watchthisspace

A Phosphorelay Circuit Drives Extracellular Alkalinization in Plant Receptor Kinase Signaling www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.08....

Our latest on brassinosteroid signaling: Ligand binding spectrum, specificity & selectivity of all BR receptors in Arabidopsis. By @albertocaregnato.bsky.social , @hmchen93.bsky.social and our great chemistry collaborators Mirek Kvasnica, Jana Oklestkova and Mirek Strnad.

Semi-automated high content analysis of pollen performance using tubetracker - Plant Reproduction Key message TubeTracker provides a method to partially automate analysis of pollen tube growth using live imaging. Abstract Pollen function is critical for successful plant reproduction and crop produ...

Semi-automated high content analysis of pollen performance using tubetracker
link.springer.com/article/10.1...

MIK2 clade receptor function in perception of a Fusarium-derived elicitor is conserved among different plant families Plants constantly monitor their environment to adapt to potential threats to their health and fitness. This involves cell-surface receptors that can detect conserved microbe-associated molecular patte...

📜 MIK2-clade receptor function in perception of a Fusarium-derived elicitor is conserved among different plant families

🧑‍🔬 Julian Maroschek, Ralph Hückelhoven, et al.

📔 @biorxiv-plants.bsky.social

🔗 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

#️⃣ #PlantScience #PlantImmunity #FusariumOxysporum #Fusarium

Over the last couple of years I have been writing individual chapters of what I call

𝗔 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗛𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗦𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲

Each chapter covers a specific, basic, but for some reason special and interesting aspect of #PlantScience research.

Have a look here 👇🧵

Kinesin-12 POK2 polarization is a prerequisite for a fully functional division site and aids cell plate positioning - Nature Communications Livanos et al. provide mechanistic insight into the recruitment and maintenance of kinesin-12 POK2, a central component of the division site in plants that is required for cell plate positioning durin...

So nice ! 😍😍😍
Sabine Muller's group paper is out! 🍀🧪🧬🔬

Livanos et al., showed that POK2 arrives at the PPB utilizing a secondary Mt-binding site.

POK2 tethering to the plasma membrane is achieved through non-specific electrostatic interactions with phospholipids 🤩

👇
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Catch & Release - rapid cost-effective protein purification from plants using a DIY GFP-Trap-protease approach www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.05....

🌱🌻Finally out! All ICIPS PIs had their say in a seminal 31 page review on the evolution of land plant sexual reproduction. With lots of fine figures to share! Thanks to @icips.bsky.social and @dfg.de for funding our work.
#PlantScienceResarch, #PlantEvoDevo
rdcu.be/elOeI

Conserved mechanical hallmark guides four-way junction avoidance during plant cytokinesis When building an organ, adjacent cells coordinate to form topologically stable junctions by integrating mechanosensitive signaling pathways. Positioni…

🚨Our paper is out!

If you ever wonder how four-way junctions are avoided during plant cell division, some answers here 🧬🍀🔬🧪🤓

👇
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Congrats. Cool story and some really pretty movies! 🔬🌱

Viral delivery of an RNA-guided genome editor for transgene-free germline editing in Arabidopsis - Nature Plants Weiss et al. engineered the tobacco rattle virus to express the RNA-guided TnpB enzyme ISYmu1 and guide RNA for transgene-free germline editing in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Our paper is just out www.nature.com/articles/s41... from the Jacobsen, Doudna, and Banfield labs on viral delivery of a tiny CRISPR system for transgene free germline editing in plants, tinyurl.com/3k223r3x. Looking for postdocs to join the team for the next phase of this work!

PLease share to spread the word. Logo by designed by @hsuanpai.bsky.social

Thank you Thomas!

Thank you Ora!

Polarized subcellular activation of Rho proteins by specific ROPGEFs drives pollen germination in Arabidopsis thaliana RHO OF PLANTS (ROPs) signaling and their activating factors ROPGEFs are essential for initiating polar growth, but which ones activate pollen germination is unknown. These authors show polarization of...

Specific ROPGEFs drive pollen germination in Arabidopsis

The first paper from my group @TUM is finally out in @plosbiology.org tinyurl.com/5n69jyuy

#PlantScience #Polarity #Pollen #ROPGEF #microscopy #Fertilization

Improved & with new results compared to the bioRxiv version
tinyurl.com/4hejrrp9

Transport of phenoxyacetic acid herbicides by PIN-FORMED auxin transporters - Nature Plants PIN transporters are key players in distributing phenoxyacetic acid herbicides. Mutagenesis and cryo-EM structures elucidate substrate specificity and transport mechanisms, paving the way for improved...

Finally out…
„Transport of phenoxyacetic acid herbicides by PIN-FORMED auxin transporters“ www.nature.com/articles/s41.... A collaboration between my group and @bjornppedersen.bsky.social led by the magic duo @lukas-schulz.bsky.social and @unglam.bsky.social