In the News
Recent Salk news from the Plant biology team
¿Cómo resisten las plantas sedientas durante una sequía?
Highlights Salk scientists debut gene expression atlas of plant leaves across development, comparing normal versus drought conditions The atlas reveals drought accelerates leaf aging; pinpoints a gene that helps leaves keep …
Los cambios epigenéticos regulan la expresión génica, pero ¿qué regula la epigenética?
LA JOLLA—All the cells in an organism have the exact same genetic sequence. What differs across cell types is their epigenetics—meticulously placed chemical tags that influence which genes are expressed …
Ocho científicos de Salk nombrados entre los investigadores más citados del mundo
LA JOLLA—Salk faculty members Joseph Ecker, PhD, Ronald Evans, PhD, Rusty Gage, PhD, Christian Metallo, PhD, Satchidananda Panda, PhD, Reuben Shaw, PhD, and Kay Tye, PhD, as well as research assistant Joseph Nery have all …
Genome-informed restoration could save our oceans and coastlines
LA JOLLA—Seagrasses preserve our oceans, offering safe harbor for sea life, calming rough waters, and storing excess carbon dioxide. Dozens of seagrass species protect coastlines around the globe, including the …
El científico del Instituto Salk Joseph Ecker recibe el Premio McClintock de Genética Vegetal y Estudios Genómicos
LA JOLLA—Joseph Ecker, PhD, has been awarded the 2026 Barbara McClintock Prize for Plant Genetics and Genome Studies from the Maize Genetics Cooperation, a global organization of maize geneticists and breeders. The …
Todo sobre la sequía: ¿Cómo se recuperan las plantas tras una sequía?
LA JOLLA—A plant’s number one priority is to grow—a feat that demands sunlight, nutrients, and water. If just one of these three inputs is missing, like water in a drought, …
Scientists debut a new foundational atlas of the plant life cycle
LA JOLLA—Nearly everything you know about plants was first discovered in a plant you’ve likely never heard of. Arabidopsis thaliana, also known as thale cress, is a small, flowering weed …
Cannabis pangenome reveals potential for medicinal and industrial use
LA JOLLA—Cannabis has been a globally important crop for millennia. While best known today as marijuana for its psychoactive cannabinoid THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), historically, cannabis has been a cornerstone of human …
La imitación de los péptidos es la forma más sincera de halago para las plantas
LA JOLLA—Industrial farming practices often deplete the soil of important nutrients and minerals, leaving farmers to rely on artificial fertilizers to support plant growth. In fact, fertilizer use has more …
La protección de raíces «dos en uno» protege a las plantas de los factores de estrés ambiental y combate el cambio climático
LA JOLLA—Plants may burrow into the ground and stretch toward the sun, but they’re ultimately stuck where they sprout—at the mercy of environmental threats like temperature, drought, and microbial infection. …
Plant cells gain immune capabilities when it’s time to fight disease
LA JOLLA—Human bodies defend themselves using a diverse population of immune cells that circulate from one organ to another, responding to everything from cuts to colds to cancer. But plants …
Las superiores habilidades fotosintéticas de algunas plantas podrían ser la clave para cultivos resilientes al clima
LA JOLLA—More than 3 billion years ago, on an Earth entirely covered with water, photosynthesis first evolved in little ancient bacteria. In the following many millions of years, those bacteria …
Joanne Chory, Salk Institute professor and pioneering plant biologist, dies at age 69
LA JOLLA—Salk Professor Joanne Chory, one of the world’s preeminent plant biologists who led the charge to mitigate climate change with plant-based solutions, died on November 12, 2024, at the …
Study reveals key gene protecting plants from harmful metals in soil
LA JOLLA—The negative impact of human activity on Earth doesn’t just affect our planet’s atmosphere—it goes much deeper, into its soils. For instance, excessive application of manure or sewage sludge …
Salk Professor Joanne Chory named 2024 Wolf Prize Laureate in Agriculture
LA JOLLA—Salk Institute Professor Joanne Chory has been selected by the Wolf Foundation to receive a 2024 Wolf Prize in the field of agriculture for her "key discoveries on plant …
Los nutrientes esenciales ayudan a las plantas a soportar el calor
LA JOLLA—Global temperatures are on the rise, with experts projecting an increase of 2.7°F by 2050. Because plants cannot regulate their own temperatures, they are especially sensitive to these temperature …
La inteligencia artificial ayuda a los científicos a modificar genéticamente plantas para combatir el cambio climático
LA JOLLA—The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) declared that removing carbon from the atmosphere is now essential to fighting climate change and limiting global temperature rise. To support these …
Controlar la dirección del crecimiento de las raíces podría ayudar a salvar los cultivos y mitigar el cambio climático
LA JOLLA—Above ground, plants stretch toward the sun. Below ground, plants tunnel through the earth. As roots soak up water and nutrients from surrounding soil, they grow and stretch to …