Topic description and stories

Spot the difference: Genetically identical thale cress plants grown under the exact same environmental conditions show significant visible differences. ©Sandra Cortijo

'Noisy' gene atlas to help explain how plants survive environmental change

25 Jan 2019

As parents of identical twins will tell you, they are never actually identical, even though they have the same genes. This is also true in the plant...

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New legal tool aims to increase openness, sharing and innovation in global biotechnology

11 Oct 2018

A new easy-to-use legal tool that enables exchange of biological material between research institutes and companies launches today.

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New ‘Rising Path’ opens at Cambridge University Botanic Garden

20 Sep 2018

A new Rising Path, designed to offer a fresh perspective on Cambridge University Botanic Garden’s historic Systematic Beds, will open to the public...

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Greenhouse gas ‘feedback loop’ discovered in freshwater lakes

04 May 2018

Latest research finds plant debris in lake sediment affects methane emissions. The flourishing reed beds created by changing climates could threaten...

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Research shows first land plants were parasitised by microbes

04 Apr 2018

Relationship between plants and filamentous microbes not only dates back millions of years, but modern plants have maintained this ancient mechanism...

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Saxifraga sempervivum, an alpine plant species discovered to produce "pure vaterite".

Rare mineral discovered in plants for first time

05 Mar 2018

A rare mineral with potential industrial and medical applications has been discovered on alpine plants at Cambridge University Botanic Garden.

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Plant meristems

Plants increase flower production within a day of soil nutrient application

23 Jan 2018

The molecular mechanisms enabling plants to quickly adapt their rate of flower production in response to changing nutrient levels in soil have been...

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Top: petals of Ursinia speciosa, a daisy, contain a dark pigment that appears blue due to 'disordered' striations. Bottom: close-up top and side view of microscopic striations.

Petals produce a 'blue halo' that helps bees find flowers

18 Oct 2017

New study finds “messy” microscopic structures on petals of some flowers manipulate light to produce a blue colour effect that is easily seen by bee...

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Cambridge University Botanic Garden (CUBG)

World's botanic gardens contain a third of all known plant species, and help protect the most threatened

25 Sep 2017

The most in-depth species survey to date finds an “astonishing array” of plant diversity in the global botanic garden network, including 41% of all...

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Left: Wheat stem rust. Right: Network map of the atmospheric transmission of spores.

Study identifies likely scenarios for global spread of devastating crop disease

25 Sep 2017

New research reveals for the first time the most likely months and routes for the spread of new strains of airborne ‘wheat stem rust’ that may...

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African plant scientists develop new skills in Cambridge to tackle problems at home

05 Apr 2017

Lab training workshop and biotech conference, organised by second year Ph.D. student and Gates Scholar, aim to build African research capacity in...

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Daffodil

Plant ‘thermometer’ triggers springtime budding by measuring night-time heat

27 Oct 2016

A photoreceptor molecule in plant cells has been found to moonlight as a thermometer after dark – allowing plants to read seasonal temperature...

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