6 posts · 5,144 views
On this web log I explore topics related to genetics, food and farming
Pamela Ronald
6 posts
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- November 5, 2009
- 04:05 PM
- 1,344 views
Plants and Bacteria 'Talk' to Thwart Disease
by Pamela Ronald in Tomorrow's Table
In plant and animal innate immunity, like many of the dances of life, it takes two to tango. A receptor molecule in the plant pairs up with a specific molecule on the invading bacteria and, presto, the immune system swings into action to defend against the invasion of the disease-causing microbe.
Unwrapping some of the mystery from how plants and bacteria communicate in this dance of immunity, hardworking scientists in my laboratory here at the University of California, Davis, have identified ........ Read more »
Sang-Won Lee, Sang-Wook Han, Malinee Sririyanum, Chang-Jin Park, Young-Su Seo, & Pamela C. Ronald. (2009) A Type I–Secreted, Sulfated Peptide Triggers XA21-Mediated Innate Immunity . Science Magazine, 850-853. info:/DOI: 10.1126/science.1173438
- March 9, 2010
- 07:24 PM
- 1,039 views
A Worm Free World
by Pamela Ronald in Tomorrow's Table
Check out this great post by Mary M on biofortifed. In it she reviews a new research paper that describes how the use of Bt could potentially save the lives of millions.
You can download a video about the researchers and their work here.
From Mary's post: "For some people, a great deal of the conflama around genetically-engineered (GE) crops has to do with the presence of a pesticide in the plant material--mainly the Bacillus thuringiensis or Bt protein--rather than coating the surface of t........ Read more »
Hu, Y., Georghiou, S., Kelleher, A., & Aroian, R. (2010) Bacillus thuringiensis Cry5B Protein Is Highly Efficacious as a Single-Dose Therapy against an Intestinal Roundworm Infection in Mice. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 4(3). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0000614
- February 13, 2010
- 07:32 PM
- 861 views
Let 'em starve
by Pamela Ronald in Tomorrow's Table
When I give lectures about the global food supply and the environment, someone in the audience will often comment that the best way to solve the problem is to quit producing so much food.
I find this type of "Let 'em starve" approach quite horrific from a humanitarian view. It also makes no sense scientifically.
Read the rest of this post... | Read the comments on this post...... Read more »
Myrskylä, M., Kohler, H., & Billari, F. (2009) Advances in development reverse fertility declines. Nature, 460(7256), 741-743. DOI: 10.1038/nature08230
- July 13, 2008
- 02:00 PM
- 775 views
Climate Change and the Future of California's Wildflowers
by Pamela Ronald in Tomorrow's Table
California is burning.The smoke obscures my view of Lake Tahoe from our cabin on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. I can also no longer see the distinctive snow cross on the flank of the 10,000-foot peak of Mt Tallac. The children cough and I rub my eyes. The smokiness invades our cabin, our clothes, our hair. Ash drops out of the sky. It is hot.Again? Just last summer, the Angora fire burned within 4 miles of our cabin. This June, a massive lightning storm sparked 800 wildfires ........ Read more »
Scott Loarie, Benjamin E Carter, Katharine Hayhoe, Sean McMahon, Richard Moe, Charles A Knight, David D Ackerly, & Craig R McClain. (2008) Climate Change and the Future of California's Endemic Flora. PLoS ONE, 3(6). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0002502
- July 9, 2008
- 11:25 PM
- 576 views
Freedom from Hunger- science can lend a helping hand
by Pamela Ronald in Tomorrow's Table
Each year an estimated 15 million hectares of rice lands (a region half the size of Italy) in South and Southeast Asia are inundated by flash floods. In Bangladesh, during the monsoon, roads are so wet that they become waterways for homemade sailboats rigged with cloth, jute, and bamboo. Such lands are home to an estimated 140 million people of whom 70 million are living on less than $1 a day, the highest concentration of poor people in the world. Here, losses of rice production can be over $1 b........ Read more »
Kenong Xu, Xia Xu, Takeshi Fukao, Patrick Canlas, Reycel Maghirang-Rodriguez, Sigrid Heuer, Abdelbagi Ismail, Julia Bailey-Serres, Pamela Ronald, & David Mackill. (2006) Sub1A is an ethylene-response-factor-like gene that confers submergence tolerance to rice. Nature, 442(7103), 705-708. DOI: 10.1038/nature04920
- August 21, 2008
- 05:04 PM
- 549 views
Redefining “Natural” in Agriculture: A review of Tomorrow’s Table in PLoS Biology
by Pamela Ronald in Tomorrow's Table
Check out the latest review of "Tomorrow’s Table" published in PLoS Biology.Here is a response to one of the points raised in the review as to what is “natural” or appropriate for agriculture.Because plants are rich in sugars, proteins, vitamins and minerals, they make obvious and tempting treats for various predators. Plants cannot run away, so instead they have evolved a set of defenses to protect themselves. Celery is seemingly benign, yet it produces toxic compounds called psoralens to........ Read more »
Tony Trewavas. (2008) Redefining “Natural” in Agriculture. PLoS Biology, 6(8). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.0060199
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