The establishment of Ustilago bromivora and Brachypodium as a biotrophic model system provides the foundation for studying new aspects of plant-pathogen interactions and for answering questions about fungal sex and speciation.

Disentangling the different selective forces shaping the evolutionary dynamics of transposable elements (TEs) in the wild grass Brachypodium distachyon.

Comparative genetics between distant plant species shows that for the PIN auxin transport proteins differential membrane and tissue-level accumulation, transport activity, and interaction result in different functional properties in the shoot post transcription.

The formation of stomatal 'helper cells' (=subsidiary cells) in grasses requires two opposing polarity domains with diverse roles in establishing division asymmetry.

In Brachypodiumdistachyon, a single locus accounts for natural variation in whether perception of short day-lengths confers competence to flower.

The HMA domains of Pikp-1 and Pikm-1 NLR receptors have convergently evolved to bind AVR-PikD with high affinity through distinct evolutionary and biochemical paths.

A luminescence-based imaging system is presented that allows soil-based environmental stimuli to be studied in root systems under physiologically relevant conditions.

Retrotransposon-derived messenger RNA plays a critical role in rice root development via sequestration of miR171, which suggests a novel trans-acting regulation by transposable elements.

Plants implement arithmetic division to optimize use of carbohydrate reserves and thus maintain metabolism and growth at night.

Comparing maize to its wild ancestor teosinte advances our understanding of how it and other cereal crops evolved, and also identifies the genetic variation that can contribute to important agricultural traits.