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Peter Etchells

@peteretchells.bsky.social
1.3K followers 846 following 161 posts

In plants, how does stuff happen in the correct place at the right time?

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Christine Faulkner @pdchristine.bsky.social · 16h
Anyone brave enough for an adventure in the uncharted waters of plant immunity and cell biology? We have a PhD studentship available as part of the NRP DTP - join us! biodtp.norwichresearchpark.ac.uk/projects/how...
biodtp.norwichresearchpark.ac.uk
How do the connections between a cell and its neighbours control how a cell responds? (FAULKNER_J27DTP) | Doctoral Training Partnership
Plant cells are connected to their neighbours via ‘tubes’ called plasmodesmata, creating an interconnected cytoplasm that joins cells within and between tissues and organs.
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Plantae.org @plantaeofficial.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
📅New #PlantSciEvents Event Added: Genetics Society Seed Plant Research Meeting 👉 buff.ly/V9zvKJo #PlantScience
buff.ly
Genetics Society Seed Plant Research Meeting
The Genetics Society Seed Plant Research Meeting provides a platform for discussing fundamental research in seed plants, with a focus on model angiosperms, incl
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Juliet Coates @julietccoates.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
We are crowdfunding for a bench in a peaceful spot at Winterbourne Botanic Garden in Birmingham in memory of Philippa Borrill. Please share widely. Please email me or @drelunadiez.bsky.social for more details. 💚🌾🌿🌳 If you would like to contribute, the link is below ⬇️.
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Elwira Smakowska-Luzan @elwirasmakowska.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Our Special Issue on receptor-ligand interactions is now online! Thanks to all the authors for sharing their knowledge and views! Huge thanks to @adsteinbrenner.bsky.social @veroglez.bsky.social and @isabelmonte.bsky.social for great collaboration: ) @theplantjournal.bsky.social for the venue!
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Mariana Schuster @marischuster.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Still one week to apply!
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Plant & Cell Physiology @plantcellphysiol.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Wood ya look at that?! 🪵 Natalia Wojciechowska & colleagues have identified two biosynthetic enzymes of the #JasmonicAcid pathway that promote #xylem development in #poplar trees, thus providing evidence for hormonal control of wood formation🌳 doi.org/10.1093/pcp/... #PlantScience
Figure showing two bar charts comparing inflorescence stem anatomy between WT and joxQ mutant of A. thaliana. Panels c-h show Arabidopsis thaliana stem sections at S3 stage and stained with toluidine blue before observation under a microscope. Image taken from figure 7 of Natalia Wojciechowska, Maciej Janicki, Katarzyna Marzec-Schmidt, Thierry Heitz, Magdalena Ślachetka, Agnieszka Ludwików, Agnieszka Bagniewska-Zadworna, Functional insights into a putative 2-OG oxygenase involved in jasmonic acid metabolism and xylem development in Populus trichocarpa, Plant and Cell Physiology, Volume 67, Issue 8, August 2026, Pages 1299–1315, https://doi.org/10.1093/pcp/pcag035
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Super-excited to see former group member Emma Turley's name up in lights
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Andy Plackett @seedrevolutionlab.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
www.nature.com/articles/s41... It's been a long time coming, but delighted to say that the first major output from my Royal Society Fellowship is now published. 🙂 #PlantScience
nature.com
The post-fertilization archegonium gene network of seedless plants contributed to the origin of seeds - Nature Communications
The authors identify conserved gene networks across fern and angiosperm reproductive development, including between the sporophyte ovule and the fern gametophyte egg-chamber. Repurposing of this netwo...
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Thomas Greb @thomasgreb.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
In an heoric endeavor, Xiomin Liu, PhD student in the lab, characterized the dynamics and topology of the cell division machinery during cambium stem cell divisions. Super fruitful collaboration with the group of Sabine Müller (@phragmoplast.bsky.social). doi.org/10.1111/nph....
doi.org
The preprophase band is dispensable for robust cell division orientation in wood‐forming cambium stem cells
Characterization of periclinal and anticlinal cell divisions in dividing cambium stem cells (CSCs). (a) Scheme indicating periclinal and anticlinal cell divisions in CSCs in the Arabidopsis hypocotyl...
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Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh @thebotanics.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
THEY'RE BACK: Our historic Palm Houses reopen in October 🎉🌴 Want to be one of the first to visit? Sign up to our presale to buy tickets 48 hours before general release: www.rbge.org.uk/palmhouses/
Palm Houses at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.
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Tonni Andersen @tonnigrubeandersen.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
Time for another preprint from the lab: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... Led by @yuanyuanzhang.bsky.social and @defengshen.bsky.social. We found some surprising secrets that connect and uncouple root barrier formation with systemic nitrogen signaling in shoots. see the thread below for more details
biorxiv.org
A tunable receptor separates root barrier formation from nutrient signaling through ligand-perception states
In roots, the endodermis controls nutrient entry by forming a barrier known as the Casparian strip. Yet how barrier-associated processes interface with systemic signaling remains unclear. Here, we sho...
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The Arabidopsis Information Resource (TAIR) @tairnews.bsky.social · 26/06/2026
Community Awards #icar2026
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
We are also indebted to @ukri.org and CSC from support
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Elvis Presley's Iconic Dance Move
ALT: Elvis Presley's Iconic Dance Move
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
Qing took on a project with a biochemistry core in a genetics lab. She was incredibly resilient and crucially, we had wonderful collaborators @xixizhang9001.bsky.social @apmahonen.bsky.social @villepaavilainen.bsky.social Ehmke, Ray, Wenbin, Prodeep, Tuomas, Hanan, Yuan. Congratulations all!
static.klipy.com
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Posing
ALT: Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Posing
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
Some really beautiful genetics, showed that a phenotype caused by constitutively active PXY, was attenuated when ERECTA was removed supported the findings.
static.klipy.com
Thanos: Gone, Reduced To Atoms - Avengers Endgame
ALT: Thanos: Gone, Reduced To Atoms - Avengers Endgame
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
As assay-after-assay came in positive; FRET, split LUC, Co-IP (Nicotiana), Co-IP (Arabidopsis cells), Co-IP (sf21 membranes), there was little doubt this complex was a thing.
static.klipy.com
Stan Marsh: Oh Jesus, Here's Another One
ALT: Stan Marsh: Oh Jesus, Here's Another One
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
While there was a depth of evidence for receptors like PXY binding to co-receptors or adaptor proteins, we couldn’t find much evidence for membrane-bound RLK’s known to bind completely different ligands forming a complex. PXY and ERECTA expression did overlap so complex formation was a possibility.
static.klipy.com
Well You're In The Right Place Tom Ripley
ALT: Well You're In The Right Place Tom Ripley
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
I had assumed the PXY-ER interaction would be underpinned by shared transcriptional targets until a fateful message from Yousef Belkhadir. Yousef thought that there might be evidence of a PXY-ERECTA protein interaction.
static.klipy.com
Mission Impossible Self-Destructing Tape
ALT: Mission Impossible Self-Destructing Tape
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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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Tom Kimmerer, PhD @tomkimmerer.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
The summer solstice is not just a calendar entry. It is a signal to all the trees in temperate zones in the north to begin preparation to survive the winter cold. Yes, today, the growing season ends for most trees. Have a look at the trees you walk by. Most of them have probably already set buds.
substack.com
Tom Kimmerer (@tomkimmerer)
Today is the summer solstice. Perhaps it is just a date on your calendar, but it is a signal occasion to temperate trees: the growing season has ended. From now until next spring, most trees are doing...
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 20/06/2026
Just got dinged by reviewers for not normalising LUC data 🤷
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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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Penelope Lindsay @penlindsay.bsky.social · 10/06/2026
my image is featured on the cover of New Phytologist! Interested in receptor proximity labeling and how receptors coordinate meristem regulation? Find out more here: nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
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Dominique Bergmann @stanfordstomata.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
This is going to be so exciting! Reach out with ideas! And come find me at ICAR in Singapore to learn more.
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
If you value a degree in Gaelic at Aberdeen, or the Sunderland glass museum, or courses with expensive equipment, you either accept the market doesn't function in the higher education sector, or you accept the losses and let the market run riot. I know what I value.
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
They wanted a market. They wanted Universities to take responsibility for cultural heritage without paying them to do so. They wanted to control the market with fee limits, which means they expect universities to run loss making courses. In a market.
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Eva-Sophie Wallner @eswallner.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Happy to announce that I have started my own research group at the MPIPZ and that I am looking for a postdoc who would like to investigate Marchantia prothallus development with me! Please spread the word and/or apply if interested :)
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Really nice story. If it wasn't auxin it had to be FERONIA!
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Jennifer Lopez Ortiz @jenlopezortiz.bsky.social · 13/03/2026
4/The trigger for phellem differentiation is mechanical: endodermis rupture releases constraints on underlying pericycle cells, allowing them to expand and differentiate into phellem. We prematurely relieved mechanical constraints and saw that it is sufficient to trigger phellem differentiation. 🛡️
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
Was fun to be a small part in project led by Guodong Wang. My two favourite observations: (1) TDIF-PXY can contribute to tissue regeneration - we add TDIF to shooting media after seeing Guodong's groups data. (2) PXL1 binds CLE46. Good to see confirmed ligand-receptor pair. doi.org/10.1111/jipb...
doi.org
A CLE–RLK–LBD signaling module promotes de novo shoot regeneration in plants
A group of CLAVATA3/ESR-RELATED (CLE) peptides redundantly promote de novo shoot regeneration, signaling through PXY/TDR-subfamily receptors to transcriptionally activate WUSCHEL-RELATED HOMEOBOX 14,...
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Anton Hur @antonhur.com · 11/05/2026
WE DON'T NEED PETROLEUM-BASED PLASTICS ANYMORE! "The [bamboo plastic] outperforms most commercial plastics and bioplastics in mechanical and thermo-mechanical metrics while maintaining full biodegradability in soil within 50 days and closed-loop recyclability with 90% retained strength."
nature.com
High-strength, multi-mode processable bamboo molecular bioplastic enabled by solvent-shaping regulation - Nature Communications
Bioplastics derived from biomass show promise as sustainable alternatives to petrochemical plastics, but their adoption is hindered by their inferior mechanical properties and processability. Here, th...
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 30/03/2026
Jeez Louise £1.82 for a litre of diesel
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Jennifer Lopez Ortiz @jenlopezortiz.bsky.social · 13/03/2026
During secondary growth, primary protective barriers break, and a new one forms beneath: the phellem. But what triggers phellem to differentiate and become a functional barrier? Our results show it’s mechanical cues from tissue rupture 🌱 Check out our preprint 👇 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... 🧵/1
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Laboratory of Plant Morphodynamics @plantmorpho.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
ERC-funded PhD position: auxin in plant morphogenesis! Come to our team to study molecular mechanisms downstream of auxin signaling that control morphogenesis in plants! ueb.cas.cz/en/news/?id=...
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 09/03/2026
www.justgiving.com/page/doria-d...
justgiving.com
Doria's fundraiser for Myeloma UK
Help Doria de Souza Etchells raise money to support Myeloma UK
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Julien Gronnier @julien-gronnier.bsky.social · 16/02/2026
Dear PPRM community, we are pleased to invite you to the next PPRM meeting, 14-16 September 2026 in Freising, Germany. Registration opening soon!
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David Dylan Thomas @daviddylanthomas.bsky.social · 11/02/2026
Don't give anything an Emmy until it's as good as this.
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Ben Williams @benpwilliams.bsky.social · 29/01/2026
Absolutely delighted that our paper on epigenetic dynamics during plant aging is out today in Science! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
science.org
Aging drives a program of DNA methylation decay in plant organs
Plants display a wide range of life spans and aging rates. Although dynamic changes to DNA methylation are a hallmark of aging in mammals, it is unclear whether similar molecular signatures reflect ra...
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 02/02/2026
It'd be good to chat Dan. I don't know the answer, but it'd be cool to pick the family apart as a next step and see if we can extend the phenotypes we have and find more.
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 02/02/2026
With fantastic collaborators; Wenbin, @mdelucas.bsky.social @bradylabs.bsky.social, Shixue, Chunli, @apmahonen.bsky.social 😄
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 02/02/2026
Given the described activators of cambium growth, we reasoned repressors were needed to balance the system. Here they are! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... Discovery: Xing, Jingyi, Emma, Riikka, Anne-Maarit, Julia, Qing, Hanan, Raluca, Joanna, Yuqi, Wiki #plantscience #plantdev
biorxiv.org
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Lisa-Marie Shillito @archaeologylisa.bsky.social · 29/01/2026
RICHeS Access fund is open for applications! Deadline Weds 8 April 2026. Up to £20,000. PhD students, heritage organisations are eligible as well as academics. Get in touch, we have a wide range of analytical capabilities and happy to discuss your ideas! www.riches.ukri.org/news-and-eve...
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Karrera Djoko @thecopperdoctor.bsky.social · 24/01/2026
Lots of PhD opportunities for UK + international students involving my lab. Topics relate to metals & microbiology. First up: TonB-dependent receptors in commensal Neisseria in my lab at Durham, with @kjosts.bsky.social and @mattbashton.bsky.social. www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
findaphd.com
Nutrient uptake in commensal bacteria: exploring uncharacterised TonB-dependent transporters. at Newcastle University on FindAPhD.com
PhD Project - Nutrient uptake in commensal bacteria: exploring uncharacterised TonB-dependent transporters. at Newcastle University, listed on FindAPhD.com
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Laura Cooper @transitionalform.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
Our paper on the mysterious Devonian organism Prototaxites has now finally been published! See the paper here (www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...) and our explainer thread below! Prototaxites reconstruction by Matt Humpage
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Allie Gaudinier @agaudinier.bsky.social · 16/01/2026
Predicting epistasis across proteins by structural logic by the amazing Michelle Tang et al www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
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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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 16/01/2026
so tired
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edgardemesa.bsky.social @edgardemesa.bsky.social · 08/01/2026
It's finally out!... Using single-cell and spatial transcriptome data, and data imputation, we created BARVISTA, a website able to perform almost genome-wide information on gene expression profiles at single-cell resolution in barley spikes! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
Imputation integrates single-cell and spatial gene expression data to resolve transcriptional networks in barley shoot meristem development - Nature Plants
Spatially resolved gene expression during barley development was done by integrating an scRNA-seq dataset from cells with unknown position with spatial transcriptomics. This dataset is publicly availa...
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Peter Etchells @peteretchells.bsky.social · 11/01/2026
Paul Nurse demonstrating that irony isn't dead in todays Guardian www.theguardian.com/science/2026...
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Christine Faulkner @pdchristine.bsky.social · 22/12/2025
We're looking for a postdoc to join us in trying to map the routes by which different signals travel through plants and identify what information they carry. Link👇or get in touch! @johninnescentre.bsky.social #PlantSciJobs www.jic.ac.uk/vacancies/po...
jic.ac.uk
Postdoctoral Researcher (Faulkner Group) | John Innes Centre
An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Postdoctoral Researcher to join the Faulkner Group at the John Innes Centre, working on cutting-edge science in the field of Cell & Developmental Biology.
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Umeå Plant Science Centre @umeaplantsciencecentre.se · 16/12/2025
🧪🌾VACANCY - Looking for a PhD in plant/forest science? Join the @hanneletuominen.bsky.social group at UPSC & the WIFORCE Research School and investigate nitrogen use efficiency and wood formation in trees! Read more and apply here👇: www.slu.se/en/about-slu... Deadline: 10 Feb 2026 #PlantSciJobs
slu.se
PhD position in nitrogen use efficiency and wood formation in forest trees | slu.se
SLU - Science and Education for Sustainable Life
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