Beneficial gut microbes and the body work together to fine-tune fat metabolism and cholesterol levels, according to a new preclinical study by investigators from Weill Cornell Medicine and the Boyce Thompson Institute.The human body has co-evolved with the beneficial...
Over 450 million years ago, plants began the epic transition from water to dry land. Among the first pioneers were the ancestors of humble hornworts, a group of small, unassuming plants that have persisted to this day. New research reveals insights into the genetic...
Scientists have long sought ways to help plants turn more carbon dioxide (CO₂) into biomass, which could boost crop yields and even combat climate change. Recent research suggests that a group of unique, often overlooked plants called hornworts may hold the...
Sweetpotatoes are an agricultural powerhouse that feeds millions globally. However, their complex genetics make it challenging for breeders to understand and improve traits like yield, disease resistance, and nutritional content. A new study reveals insights into the...
As climate change accelerates, scientists are sounding the alarm about its potentially devastating impact on the world’s food supply. In a paper published by Trends in Plant Science, an international team of researchers warns that without rapid changes to how we...
Apples rank among the world’s most valuable fruit crops, with production spanning more than 100 countries. Some apple trees naturally develop into what farmers call “spur-type” varieties—compact trees that are more productive and easier to maintain....
Along Colombia’s Pacific coast, a small shellfish called piangua has been a crucial part of local communities for generations. This humble mollusk is a vital source of income and nutrition for many coastal residents. As a regional resource that can be...
Roses are one of the world’s most beloved and widely cultivated ornamental plants, captivating hearts and adorning gardens for centuries. Despite their popularity, the genetic origins and breeding history of modern roses have remained mostly unknown. A new study...
Maize (corn) is one of the most important staple crops in the world and has been extensively studied. Yet, many aspects of the genetic mechanisms regulating its growth and development remain unexplored. Recent research revealed that a family of proteins called COI1,...
Viruses are master parasites that have adapted to infect many host species. Some viruses even use multiple hosts to spread their infections – such as arboviruses that use insects to move their infections to mammalian hosts like humans. Understanding how they move...
In the world of academic science, hiring new faculty members typically follows a predictable pattern: candidates apply individually and are evaluated primarily on their personal achievements. What if there was a way to build more collaborative, diverse teams of...
As our climate changes and soil salinity increases in many agricultural areas, finding crops that can thrive in these challenging conditions is crucial. Cultivated tomatoes, while delicious, often struggle in salty soils. Their wild cousins, however, have evolved to...
Cotton is woven into the very fabric of our lives, from soft T-shirts to comfortable jeans and cozy bedsheets. It’s the world’s leading renewable textile fiber and the backbone of a global industry worth billions.As climate change intensifies, cotton farmers face...
Imagine a small fruit that tastes like a cross between a tomato and a pineapple, wrapped in its own natural paper lantern. That’s the groundcherry (Physalis grisea) – a little-known relative of tomatoes that’s been quietly growing in gardens and...
A new study challenges the common theory that the devastating potato blight pathogen Phytophthora infestans originated in Mexico. Researchers meticulously reconstructed its global migration history and found it likely originated in the South American Andes before...
Phenotyping, which involves assessing observable plant characteristics, is crucial for understanding plant development and response to environmental stresses. Traditional methods are often cumbersome, costly, and destructive, limiting research scope and scale. A new...
Plants and the animals that eat them have evolved together in fascinating ways, creating a dynamic interplay of survival strategies. Many plants have developed physical and chemical defenses to fend off herbivores. A well-known strategy in flowering plants is to...
Maize is one of the world’s most widely grown crops and is essential to global food security. But like other plants, its growth and productivity can be limited by the slow activity of Rubisco, the enzyme responsible for carbon assimilation during photosynthesis. In a...
The Boyce Thompson Institute (BTI) proudly announces that Maria Harrison, the William H. Crocker Professor at BTI and an Adjunct Professor at Cornell University’s School of Plant Sciences, has been elected a Fellow of the Royal Society, the United Kingdom’s national...
On April 23rd, Georg Jander, a professor from the Boyce Thompson Institute, addressed an audience in the offices of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. In a compelling presentation titled “The Next Agricultural Revolution: Targeted...
In a fascinating dive into the past, a team of researchers from the Boyce Thompson Institute (BTI) and USDA has uncovered intriguing details about the origins and spread of the bottle gourd, one of the oldest domesticated crops. Their research, recently published in...
Imagine: You find the dried-up remains of a once green and lush philodendron on your bookshelf and realize you can’t remember the last time you watered your houseplants. You soak the soil with water, hoping you can breathe life back into its desiccated husk, but it is...
Mounting evidence suggests that the secret to understanding human health and combating metabolic diseases lies hidden within the microscopic world of our gut bacteria. Recent research by scientists at the Boyce Thompson Institute (BTI) and Cornell University reveals...
The intricate dance of nature often unfolds in mysterious ways, hidden from the naked eye. At the heart of this enigmatic tango lies a vital partnership: the symbiosis between plants and a type of fungi known as arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi. New groundbreaking...
In a world where the intricacies of molecular biology often seem as vast and mysterious as the cosmos, a new groundbreaking study delves into the microscopic universe of proteins, unveiling a fascinating aspect of their existence. This revelation could hold profound...
An international team of researchers has uncovered a remarkable genetic phenomenon in lycophytes, which are similar to ferns and among the oldest land plants. Their study, recently published in the journal PNAS, reveals that these plants have maintained a consistent...
In the fascinating world of plant biology, an innovative study recently featured on the cover of The Plant Journal has been turning heads. The research delves into the intricate defense mechanisms of tomatoes against the notorious bacterial pathogen, Pseudomonas...
In a significant advancement in the field of biochemistry, scientists at BTI and Cornell University have uncovered new insights into a family of metabolites, acylspermidines, that could change how we understand aging and fight diseases.The study, recently published in...
Peppers are a versatile, flavorful, and widely popular crop, used not only as a healthy food source but also for their medicinal properties. In a pioneering study recently published in Nature Communications, an international team of researchers, including scientists...
The International Society for Plant Pathology (ISPP) recently announced that incoming BTI president Dr. Silvia Restrepo has been honored with the 13th Jakob Eriksson Prize for Plant Pathology, the highest international accolade in the field. The award was presented on...
Watermelon is a globally significant agricultural product, both in terms of the total amount produced and the total economic value generated.Scientists at the Boyce Thompson Institute have constructed a comprehensive “super-pangenome” for watermelon and...
You probably wouldn’t be surprised to learn that watermelon is the second largest fruit crop in the world (if you don’t count tomatoes as a fruit), just barely behind bananas. However, you may be surprised by a few of these lesser-known watermelon facts:...
On June 27, Boyce Thompson Institute welcomed ten high school students to our High School Research Experience and two high school students to our Workforce Advantage Program. The High School Research Experience focuses on training and inspiring the next generation of...
Tomatoes are a staple in diets worldwide and an essential part of sustainable agriculture. Now, scientists at BTI have reported groundbreaking insights into a long-known tomato mutation, unlocking the potential for enhanced fruit quality and stress...
On June 5, Boyce Thompson Institute welcomed 39 undergraduate students from colleges across the country to experience the life of a researcher for 10 weeks. Now in its 23rd year, BTI’s NSF funded Plant Genome Research Program (PGRP) and USDA funded Innovations in...
We are proud to announce the appointment of Dr. Silvia Restrepo as BTI’s ninth and first female president. She will assume the position in October, succeeding President David Stern, who has led the organization since 2004. This historic appointment comes as BTI...
Magdalena Julkowska and Julie Bell recently traveled to the Netherlands, where they performed a factory acceptance test on BTI’s new phenotyping facility!The facility will allow side and top-view RGB imaging, masking on chlorophyll fluorescence, as well as top-view...
A new perspective published in the journal Nature Chemical Biology uncovers a previously unknown biochemical recycling process in animals. The authors review a flurry of recent papers demonstrating that animals extensively recycle biochemical waste to produce novel...
The Boyce Thompson Institute (BTI) is delighted to announce that faculty member Fay-Wei Li has been promoted to Associate Professor on January 13. Li was evaluated on his achievements to date and likelihood of continued success in the future. Since joining BTI in...
Killing crop-damaging insects by targeting genes essential to their survival is a promising approach to pest control. Because essential genes are often conserved across multiple insect species, the challenge is finding targets whose silencing kills the pests but not...
As climate change is expected to lead to more frequent periods of drought, researchers are increasingly working to make discoveries that can help plants adapt to prolonged water stress. Researchers from Boyce Thompson Institute and Cornell University have completed...
Dr. Jane Silverthorne, Chair of BTI’s Scientific Advisory Board and member of its Board of Directors, died unexpectedly on August 15, 2022. Jane’s rich biography and programmatic contributions have been remembered by UC Santa Cruz, where she held her first faculty...
Rates of anxiety and depression have been increasing around the world for decades, a trend that has been sharply exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. New research led by the Boyce Thompson Institute’s Frank Schroeder could ultimately lead to new therapeutics to help...
To help plant breeders speed crop improvement around the world, Lukas Mueller of the Boyce Thompson Institute worked with an international team of 57 people to create Breedbase, a database software that was described in the July issue of G3. “In the current era of...
Boyce Thompson Institute celebrated its 22nd annual Plant Genome Research Program (PGRP) summer internship program with an award ceremony at the George and Helen Kohut Symposium, which was held at the Institute on August 4. BTI also concluded the fourth year of its...
As the global population booms and climate change continues, improving crops to produce more food, use less resources like water and pesticides, and survive harsher environments will be needed to feed the planet sustainably. For example, fungal diseases are...
Tailoring a person’s diet or medicine based on their genomes has been a goal of the medical community for decades, but the strategy has not been widely successful because people metabolize chemicals differently. A drug may work differently for two patients because...
Shiqi Zhang spent many months sitting alone in a dark room, staring intently into the lens of a confocal microscope as she focused a laser beam on plant cells mounted on a glass slide. She was measuring changes in the intensity of fluorescent light emitted by the...
Genomes contain regions between protein-coding genes that produce lengthy RNA molecules that never give rise to a protein. These long intergenic non-coding RNAs (lincRNAs) are thought to have important functions, such as regulating responses to environmental change....
