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Margot Smit

@likeyoda1.bsky.social
1.4K followers 258 following 51 posts

Emmy Noether/Junior Group Leader at ZMBP Tübingen 🌱 plant development | cell identity | gene regulation | time | embryogenesis 🎨 amateur printmaker | linocut

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Reposted by Margot Smit
SEBiology @sebiology.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
🌱 Join the (@jxbotany.bsky.social) team as an Assistant Editor! A 12-month opportunity based in Lancaster, supporting peer review, journal meetings, content promotion and editorial development. 📅 Apply by 23 October 2026 More information: www.sebiology.org/resource/joi...
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Sainsbury Laboratory Cambridge University (SLCU) @slcuplants.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Wow, what a day! 👏 A huge shout-out to our amazing Flash Talk presenters and poster presenters. The poster session was packed with exciting science, thoughtful questions, and great conversations. A brilliant start to the 2026 Sainsbury Laboratory Symposium #SLS26! 🌱🔬
Collage of Flash Talk presenters on Day 1 of Symposium
Alicia Camuel - Poster #3 
Annalene Hansen - Poster #7
Chiara Perico - Poster #11
Giovanna Frugis - Poster #15
Ingo H. M. S. Nettersheim - Poster #19
Jayne Griffiths - Poster #21
Katharina Schiessl - Poster #27 
Margot Evelien Smit - Poster #35 
Thea van den Berg - Poster #51 
Vishwadeep Mane - Poster #53
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Daniel Kierzkowski @kierzkowskilab.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
🌱We are looking for an Assistant Professor in Plant Molecular Genetics @irbv.bsky.social If you are passionate about genetics, molecular biology, or imaging, this is your chance to join a community of researchers working on plant development, cell biology, evolution, and biodiversity 🧬🔬 🧪🍁
rh-carriere-dmz-eng.synchro.umontreal.ca
Careers
Through your undergraduate and graduate-level teaching, and your research activities, you will contribute to the faculty’s pursuit of excellence. Furthermore, you will promote your discipline and actively participate in the daily activities of a renowned institution. As such, you will:
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Mariana Romeiro Motta @mromeiromotta.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
PhD position available (start 2027) in my group at TUM! We study how mechanical stress controls cell cycle progression and cytoskeletal dynamics in plants, combining cell biology, biochemistry and biophysics. CV + cover letter to mariana.romeiro-motta@tum.de. RTs welcome! #PlantSciJobs
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Arvid Herrmann 🍃 @arvidhema.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Very happy to see this work out as a preprint! 🌽🌱 How are shoot stem cells specified in the maize embryo? We uncover a small RNA-driven morphogenic circuit linking positional information with auxin, cell wall mechanics & cell division patterning. Check it out 👇 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
biorxiv.org
Specification of embryonic shoot stem cells via a small RNA-driven morphogenic circuit
The specification of embryonic stem cells capable of self-renewing and differentiation into virtually any cell type, is one of the most consequential events in the development of a multicellular organ...
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Mariana Schuster @marischuster.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
I'm excited to share that my newly funded #ERCStG FRONTERA is recruiting two postdoctoral researchers at @ipbhalle.bsky.social 🌱🔬 If you are passionate about plant immunity, proteolysis, membrane proteins, or proteomics, I'd love to hear from you. 🧵 Please RT/share!
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Pablo González-Suárez @pablidopsis.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
One of my recent In Brief articles for @theplantcell.bsky.social below 👇 I highlight findings from Li and colleagues, who comprehensively characterized the seasonal chromatin landscape of hybrid aspen during dormancy and bud release 🌡️🧬
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Laura Medina-Puche @lauramepul.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
🌱 Job alert! A PhD position starting in 2027 is available with me and Andrea Gust @zmbp-tuebingen.bsky.social as part of the Cluster of Excellence @greenrobust.de 👉 Interested? Apply now &/or share! uni-tuebingen.de/universitaet... #PlantSciJob #PhDPosition
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Margot Smit @likeyoda1.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
📣 Job alert! 2 Positions starting 2027. PhD position with me and @bayerlab.bsky.social on Robustness of embryonic and stomatal development, part of @greenrobust.de Postdoc position on the regulation of cell state, following up on some exciting snRNAseq dat! Apply now or share! #PlantSciJob
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ZMBP @zmbp-tuebingen.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
📣 Job alert! PhD position on Regulation of Pattern Scaling in Plant Stem Cell Niches in Marja Timmermans's lab and co-supervised by @cecilialaram.bsky.social The project is part of the @cerealcell.bsky.social consortium. The position is available from October 1st Apply now or share it! #PlantSciJob
Advert of the PhD position. Applications should be sent to Marja Timmermans or Cecilia Lara-Mondragón as a single pdf containing the motivation letter, CV, and contact details of 3 referees. 
The advert shows a maize plant and several images of maize shoot apical meristems.
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GeminiTeamLab @geminiteamlab.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
So excited and incredibly grateful for this opportunity! 🦠🌱🧬
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Dolf Weijers @dolfweijers.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
It took some time, but we are thrilled to present the first major outcome of our @erc.europa.eu ERC DIRNDL AdG project: Evgeniya Pukhovaya @epukh.bsky.social and others in our team describe the discovery of a mechanism for polar protein targeting in plants (1/13) www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
biorxiv.org
Systematic proteomics identifies a conserved mechanism for polar targeting of plant cortical proteins
Multicellular development is tightly coupled to the polarization of individual cells, which partitions polar proteins along the cell cortex and can control asymmetric cell division, anisotropic growth...
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Gregor Mendel Institute of Molecular Plant Biology @gmivienna.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
The GMI @gmivienna.bsky.social of the @oeaw.bsky.social seeks to appoint a Scientific Director (f/m/x) to lead one of Europe’s premier research institutes in plant biology. Apply by Nov. 15 via GMI.search.director@oeaw.ac.at. More information: www.oeaw.ac.at/de/gmi/join-...
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Brady Lab @bradylabs.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
Our latest preprint! A deep learning framework that maps suberin, lignin and aerenchyma in both monocots and dicots! We present a collection of 1,695 fluorescent images. One surprise-the model works best when trained on both monocots + dicots! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
biorxiv.org
RADIX: a deep learning framework that maps root barriers across species and reveals genetic and environmental contributions
Root anatomical barriers, including the suberized and lignified walls of the endodermis and exodermis, and cortical aerenchyma, regulate water and nutrient transport, gas exchange, and rhizosphere int...
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Dominique Bergmann @stanfordstomata.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Super cool exploration of stomatal bHLH gene evolution in ferns and gymnosperms. A decade ago Anne Vatén @stomagenesis.bsky.social already knew these plants were critical missing links -- now her group has functional studies in spruce! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
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Sainsbury Laboratory Cambridge University (SLCU) @slcuplants.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
There's still time to join us for the 2026 Sainsbury Laboratory Symposium on 22-24 September (#SLS26)! This year's Symposium theme is Shaping Life: Mechanisms of Morphogenesis and is coordinated by Sarah Robinson and Neha Bhatia. www.slcu.cam.ac.uk/sainsbury-la...
Sainsbury Laboratory Symposium 2026 logo - Shaping Life-Mechanisms of Morphogenesis. Timelapse of a developing Arabidopsis leaf imaged at 9-12 days old under a confocal microscope, with cells segmented and coloured using MorphographX software. Images by Sarah Attrill.
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Charlie Anderson @candersonlab.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
Less than two weeks to apply for a tenure-track faculty position in plant biology in the amazing Biology Department at Penn State! psu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/PSU_Ac...
psu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com
Tenure-Track Faculty Position in Plant Biology
APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS: CURRENT PENN STATE EMPLOYEE (faculty, staff, technical service, or student), please login to Workday to complete the internal application process. Please do not apply here, a...
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Pablo González-Suárez @pablidopsis.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
A while back I wrote this In Brief summary higlighting work by Qiao et al 👇 On stomatal development in maize, where MUTE forms nuclear condensates 🌺
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Volcani Institute @volcaniinstitute.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
Prof. Avi Sadka's lab and Dr. Ido Nir's lab are looking for a #Postdoctoral candidate for a collaborative project.
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Bayer lab @bayerlab.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
Our latest preprint is online. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... Our exciting data show that embryonic patterning in Arabidopsis is kick-started by differential sensitivity towards auxin and not by differential distribution of auxin.
biorxiv.org
Before auxin distribution matters: Prepatterning of the Arabidopsis embryo axis by MPK6-dependent AUX/IAA8 phosphorylation
In growth and development of plants, the signaling molecule auxin plays an instrumental role. Many patterning processes are controlled by auxin signaling in a self-organizing matter. After fertilizati...
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Margot Smit @likeyoda1.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
Fresh preprint online from our group! We find that stomatal maturation IS possible in the embryo, when they lack ERECTA signaling, but then still, only at the cotyledon tip. A thread. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
biorxiv.org
ERECTA signaling controls the timing of Arabidopsis Guard Cell maturation at the embryonic leaf tip
While cell identities are established early during embryogenesis, these cells remain immature until germination, and the mechanisms enforcing this developmental pause are poorly understood. Embryonic ...
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Dominique Bergmann @stanfordstomata.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
1/9 🧵New preprint from the lab! A midpoint in a long journey to understand specificity among bHLH transcription factors in plants. Part IV: how does an accessory domain guide specificity of heterodimerizing bHLHs? #PlantSci #TranscriptionFactors #stomata www.biorxiv.org/cgi/content/...
biorxiv.org
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The Plant Cell @theplantcell.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
IN BRIEF: Better together: the transcription factor MUTE aggregates into nuclear condensates to regulate stomatal development in maize (Pablo González-Suárez) doi.org/10.1093/plce... #PlantScience @aspbofficial
doi.org
Better together: the transcription factor MUTE aggregates into nuclear condensates to regulate stomatal development in maize
Moving from water to land was no easy job for plants. Over millions of years, ancestors of modern land flora evolved critical adaptations to prevent desicc
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Juan Carlos De la Concepcion @delaconcepcionjc.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
PLEASE SHARE! New job openings in my lab @zmbp-tuebingen.bsky.social. We have a broad interest into the mechanistic basis of how molecular complexes are rewired during cellular development in plants and during invasion by pathogens. 🌱🍄🔬 See details below 👇 #PlantSciJobs
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jasper-lamers.bsky.social @jasper-lamers.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
Our work on the mechanoresponsiveness of actin is out! While plant microtubules have been extensively studied for their role in mechanobiology, actin has very much been ignored. Here we show that actin responds to cellular deformations within minutes and observed it in Marchantia and Arabidopsis!
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Sebastian Schornack @dromius.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
Preprint! How do "friendly" rhizobia build a legume nodule? @albinteulet.bsky.social found that some may carry hidden transcription factors - proteins that mimic DNA-binding folds to enter the plant nucleus and rewrite its developmental program. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... (1/6)
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Arif Ashraf @aribidopsis.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
🍀🔬 Control of plant organ growth linked to cell division orientation in inner tissues @currentbiology.bsky.social www.cell.com/current-biol...
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Volker Lipka @volkerlipka.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
We are currently recruiting an Independent Junior Research Group Leader in the field of biotic and/or abiotic stress biology in plants at the University of Göttingen (starting in January 2027). www.uni-goettingen.de/de/644546.ht... Best, Salma Balazadeh & Volker Lipka
uni-goettingen.de
Stellenanzeigen - Georg-August-Universität Göttingen
Webseiten der Georg-August-Universität Göttingen
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Frank Menke @frankmenke.bsky.social · 02/07/2026
PhD project on Blast Fungus host pentration open in my #Proteomics group at @thesainsburylab.bsky.social for an October 2026 entry. Collaborative project with @talbotlabtsl.bsky.social. Deadline: 30th July. Open to Home Fee status applicants. biodtp.norwichresearchpark.ac.uk/projects/inv...
biodtp.norwichresearchpark.ac.uk
Investigating host penetration by the rice blast fungus (MENKE_S26DTP3) | Doctoral Training Partnership
MENKE_S26DTP3
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Andy Murdock @andymurdock.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Botany friends: cool job alert. We're searching for a new Director for the UC & Jepson Herbaria here at UC Berkeley. Share with nice people. aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF05405 🌿🌺🌵
aprecruit.berkeley.edu
Associate/Full Professor- Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics- Integrative Biology, and Director- University of California Berkeley Herbaria
University of California, Berkeley is hiring. Apply now!
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Michael Raissig @michaelraissig.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
🌾 Every grass leaf shares the same repeating short-long cell pattern in its epidermis. Our new #preprint identifies the protein that builds it. 🔬🧬 📄 preprint: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... 🧵⬇️ 1/11
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Heike Lindner @heikelindner.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
Now, you can find our single-cell transcriptomic dataset of the developing grass leaf in The Plant Cell (academic.oup.com/plcell/artic...). You can also screen for the expression of your genes of interest (shiny.ips.unibe.ch). Congrats to all authors, especially the brilliant @lbmountain.bsky.social
academic.oup.com
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Stéphanie Robert @srobertgroup.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
Latest publication form the group and first paper on poplar! GWAS and discovery of a MYB TF involved in cell shape acquisition nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/... @siamsadoyle.bsky.social @umeaplantsciencecentre.se Thanks to @erc.europa.eu @vetenskapsradet.bsky.social Kempe fondation
nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
A drought stress‐induced MYB transcription factor regulates pavement cell shape in leaves of European aspen (Populus tremula)
MYB305a promoter expression increases in pavement cells as they grow and acquire their complex shape.
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Thomas Greb @thomasgreb.bsky.social · 04/07/2026
Super nice story of the Nimchuk lab! CLV signaling represses vascular development in the shoot apical meristem: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
biorxiv.org
CLAVATA3 peptide signaling from stem cells integrates vascular organization and stem cell maintenance in Arabidopsis shoots
Terrestrial plant biomass relies on the formation of vascular bundles (VBs) comprising xylem, cambial, and phloem cells that drive secondary growth and wood formation. How VB formation and organizatio...
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Sadaf Shadan @sshadan.bsky.social · 01/07/2026
Nature Communications is looking for a plant biology editor: springernature.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com/SpringerNatu...
springernature.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com
Associate/ Senior Editor
Job Title: Associate or Senior Editor Locations: Pune, Shanghai, Beijing Application Deadline: 15th July'26 About Springer Nature Springer Nature is one of the leading publishers of research in the wo...
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Avilash Singh Yadav @morpholosophist.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
Please repost! 🌿 Postdoctoral position available in the Yadav Lab at UMass Amherst! 🌿 Apply by September 25, 2026. See the advertisement below. drive.google.com/file/d/1W9QU... We are seeking a #postdoc to investigate the genetic, and biomechanical principles underlying the leaf morphogenesis.
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Claudia Köhler @claudiakohler11.bsky.social · 01/07/2026
Our lab @mpi-mp-potsdam.bsky.social is hiring two postdoctoral researchers to join our ERC-funded GRAFT project on mobile small RNAs in plants. 🔗 Details: jobs.mpimp-golm.mpg.de/jobposting/b... 📅 Deadline: July 31, 2026 Please share!
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Sjon Hartman @hartman-plantlab.com · 30/06/2026
Looking forward to present our work on epigenetic flooding stress memory in plants at #SEBconference (unfortunately as a virtual participant)! I'll talk about our recent #plantscience #epigenetics preprint and more 🌱🌊 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
biorxiv.org
An oxygen-sensing Polycomb-group protein encodes flooding stress memory in plants
Most organisms, including plants, can encode stress memories that improve resilience to repeated environmental challenges. Flooding events expose plants to recurrent hypoxia, yet whether plants establ...
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Min-Yao Jhu @minyaojhu.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
1/ Excited to share our new bioRxiv preprint! "4D spatial transcriptomics reveals nodule identity emerges through stacked parallel developmental programs" 📄 doi.org/10.64898/202... Using Xenium, we generated a 4D (3D space + time) atlas of nodule development in Medicago truncatula.
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Jennifer Mach (she/they) @jennifermach.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
@planteditors.bsky.social blog post on #accessible color schemes updated with a discussion of this paper (in Resources, at the end). #SciCom planteditors.com/figures-in-f...
planteditors.com
Figures in focus: Accessible color schemes - Plant Editors
Using color in data visualization can help the reader understand your data…except when it doesn’t. Indeed, a 2012 meta-analysis found that roughly 8% of Caucasian men and 4% to 6.5% of Chinese and Jap...
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Yasin Dagdas @plantophagy.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
open.substack.com/pub/inprepar...
open.substack.com
ERC Now Requires Rejected Applicants To Grow Oak Tree From Acorn Before Resubmission
BRUSSELS—In an effort to ensure that rejected applicants have undergone “sufficient personal and scientific growth” before resubmitting, the European Research Council announced Tuesday that scientists...
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Jessica Lee Erickson @ericksonlab.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
New Preprint! We identified 20 new type II-secreted effectors from Xanthomonas euvesicatoria and show that they help bacteria feed and remodel plant cell walls during infection. Proud of my team at #ZMBP and collaborators for making this possible! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
biorxiv.org
Defining the Xanthomonas euvesicatoria type II-secreted effector arsenal: core nutritional functions and effector diversity
The type II secretion (T2S) system is conserved across the Xanthomonas lineage, yet its contributions to pathogenicity and secreted protein repertoires are poorly defined. We demonstrate that T2S syst...
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
Really pleased to see Qing He’s work out in its final form (www.pnas.org/doi/epdf/10....). My group had previously shown that PXY-mediated regulation of cambium development had an ERECTA-mediated influence, but we didn’t understand the mechanism. 🧵
pnas.org
PNAS
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a peer reviewed journal of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) - an authoritative source of high-impact, original research that broadly spans...
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Nick Desnoyer @nickdesnoyer.bsky.social · 20/06/2026
Plant cell sculptures, hand-woven by @jodiearmand.bsky.social These are some of the coolest bio-inspired and bio-accurate works I've seen. Go check out her work!!
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Daniel Kierzkowski @kierzkowskilab.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
🍃 Growing a flat leaf 🍃 Check out our new review to learn how plants generate, maintain, and modulate flatness. A pleasure to put this together with Alexis De Carufel, Elvis Branchini, in collaboration with Marja Timmermans 🙏 👉 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
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James Briscoe @jamesbriscoe.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
As Editor of @dev-journal.bsky.social I get asked "What are you doing about your impact factor?" In our new editorial we say: Ask not what Dev can do for the impact factor. Ask what you can do for Dev's IF The IF is about how we all cite, review & assess each other's work doi.org/10.1242/dev....
doi.org
The elephant in the room: impact factor
Summary: This Editorial offers an honest look at impact factor trends in developmental biology, explains how Development serves its community, and makes the case that sustaining developmental biology ...
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Silvia Ramundo @sramundo.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
Do you enjoy the thrill of discovery? Does this photo give you good vibes? Then you might be the right person to join our lab! Current projects range from chloroplast transcription to thylakoid membrane remodeling & we would be happy to welcome bright and motivated people at all career stages!
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Zoe Nahas @zoenahas.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
Tune in this coming Monday on zoom! I'll be presenting work from my PhD @slcuplants.bsky.social on how plants regulate their shoot branching architecture via auxin, strigolactone, and BRC1.
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Pablo González-Suárez @pablidopsis.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
I'm thrilled to see our recent paper out in @dev-journal.bsky.social 🎉 Here we look into the transition from cell division to differentiation in the late stomatal lineage and identify regulators of guard cell morphology and function doi.org/10.1242/dev....
doi.org
Targets of SPEECHLESS and FAMA control guard cell division and expansion in the late stomatal lineage
Highlighted Article: In Arabidopsis stomatal cells, SPEECHLESS persists into maturing guard cells where its balance with FAMA is essential for guard cell development. Transcriptomic and genetic analys...
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Margot Smit @likeyoda1.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
Happy to share our new paper in @dev-journal.bsky.social . This project started while I was at Stanford with @stanfordstomata.bsky.social and was completed at @zmbp-tuebingen.bsky.social by @pablidopsis.bsky.social . Find it here: journals.biologists.com/dev/article/...
journals.biologists.com
Targets of SPEECHLESS and FAMA control guard cell division and expansion in the late stomatal lineage
Highlighted Article: In Arabidopsis stomatal cells, SPEECHLESS persists into maturing guard cells where its balance with FAMA is essential for guard cell development. Transcriptomic and genetic analys...
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